KBC Group NV Raises Stake in Perrigo Company plc (NYSE:PRGO)

KBC Group NV raised its stake in shares of Perrigo Company plc (NYSE:PRGO) by 25.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,517 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 905 shares during the quarter. KBC Group NV’s holdings in Perrigo were worth $118,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of PRGO. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Perrigo by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,162,656 shares of the company’s stock worth $183,935,000 after acquiring an additional 249,640 shares during the period. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Perrigo by 11.2% in the second quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 3,882,438 shares of the company’s stock worth $99,701,000 after purchasing an additional 391,646 shares during the period. Cooke & Bieler LP raised its position in shares of Perrigo by 0.9% in the second quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 3,501,401 shares of the company’s stock worth $89,916,000 after buying an additional 30,150 shares in the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Perrigo by 23.1% during the third quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 2,482,544 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,117,000 after buying an additional 465,161 shares during the period. Finally, Sound Shore Management Inc. CT increased its stake in Perrigo by 5.2% in the 2nd quarter. Sound Shore Management Inc. CT now owns 2,391,049 shares of the company’s stock worth $61,402,000 after acquiring an additional 117,230 shares during the last quarter. 95.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Perrigo Stock Performance

NYSE:PRGO opened at $27.10 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -23.16 and a beta of 0.48. The business has a 50 day moving average of $25.98 and a 200 day moving average of $27.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 2.56 and a quick ratio of 1.77. Perrigo Company plc has a 1-year low of $23.89 and a 1-year high of $34.60.

Perrigo (NYSE:PRGO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.81. The company had revenue of $1.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.12 billion. Perrigo had a negative net margin of 3.64% and a positive return on equity of 7.38%. The firm’s revenue was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.64 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Perrigo Company plc will post 2.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Perrigo Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be issued a $0.276 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.07%. Perrigo’s dividend payout ratio is currently -94.02%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on PRGO shares. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $30.00 price target (down previously from $50.00) on shares of Perrigo in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. StockNews.com raised shares of Perrigo from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $42.00 price objective on shares of Perrigo in a research report on Monday, September 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Perrigo currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $37.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Ronald Craig Janish sold 13,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.40, for a total transaction of $382,200.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 20,553 shares in the company, valued at $604,258.20. The trade was a 38.74 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Katherine C. Doyle sold 8,954 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.30, for a total value of $244,444.20. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 6,009 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $164,045.70. This trade represents a 59.84 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Perrigo Company Profile

Perrigo Company plc provides over-the-counter health and wellness solutions to enhance individual well-being in the United States, Europe, and internationally. It operates through Consumer Self-Care Americas and Consumer Self-Care International segments. The company develops, manufactures, markets, and distributes self-care consumer products, such as upper respiratory products, including cough suppressants, expectorants, and sinus and allergy relief; nutrition products consisting of infant formulas and nutritional beverages; digestive health products, including antacids, anti-diarrheal, and anti-heartburn; pain and sleep-aids products comprising pain relievers and fever reducers; and oral care products, which include toothbrushes, toothbrush replacement heads, floss, flossers, whitening products, and toothbrush covers.