Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 70,922 Shares of OUTFRONT Media Inc. (NYSE:OUT)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lessened its position in shares of OUTFRONT Media Inc. (NYSE:OUT) by 9.8% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 651,513 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 70,922 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in OUTFRONT Media were worth $11,975,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quarry LP lifted its stake in OUTFRONT Media by 258.8% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,837 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 1,325 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI acquired a new position in shares of OUTFRONT Media during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in OUTFRONT Media during the third quarter worth $32,000. Virtus Fund Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in OUTFRONT Media in the third quarter worth $49,000. Finally, Quest Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of OUTFRONT Media by 30.0% during the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 4,311 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 994 shares during the period.

OUTFRONT Media Stock Down 3.1 %

OUT opened at $17.69 on Monday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $18.52 and its 200 day simple moving average is $16.99. OUTFRONT Media Inc. has a 52 week low of $12.27 and a 52 week high of $19.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.00. The stock has a market cap of $2.94 billion, a PE ratio of 12.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.96.

OUTFRONT Media (NYSE:OUT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 12th. The financial services provider reported $0.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by ($0.20). OUTFRONT Media had a net margin of 13.30% and a return on equity of 40.33%. The business had revenue of $451.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $456.38 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.46 EPS. OUTFRONT Media’s revenue for the quarter was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that OUTFRONT Media Inc. will post 1.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

OUTFRONT Media Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a special dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. OUTFRONT Media’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 87.59%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on OUT shares. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on OUTFRONT Media in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $22.00 price objective for the company. Wolfe Research downgraded OUTFRONT Media from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. StockNews.com lowered OUTFRONT Media from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on OUTFRONT Media from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $21.00 price target on shares of OUTFRONT Media in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $19.00.

About OUTFRONT Media

OUTFRONT leverages the power of technology, location, and creativity to connect brands with consumers outside of their homes through one of the largest and most diverse sets of billboard, transit, and mobile assets in North America. Through its technology platform, OUTFRONT will fundamentally change the ways advertisers engage audiences on-the-go.