Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 57,720 Shares of Post Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:POST)

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Post Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:POST) by 34.5% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 109,670 shares of the company’s stock after selling 57,720 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Post were worth $12,694,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in POST. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Post by 6.7% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,288,249 shares of the company’s stock worth $562,035,000 after buying an additional 332,811 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in Post by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,063,104 shares of the company’s stock valued at $319,052,000 after purchasing an additional 27,448 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. boosted its holdings in Post by 51.4% in the 2nd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,237,165 shares of the company’s stock valued at $128,863,000 after purchasing an additional 419,945 shares during the period. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC grew its position in Post by 3.8% in the 2nd quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC now owns 874,320 shares of the company’s stock worth $91,069,000 after purchasing an additional 32,188 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in shares of Post by 2.8% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 580,292 shares of the company’s stock worth $61,674,000 after purchasing an additional 15,975 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.85% of the company’s stock.

Post Stock Down 1.5 %

Shares of POST opened at $106.14 on Friday. Post Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $82.86 and a 12 month high of $118.96. The stock has a market cap of $6.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.77 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $112.95 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $109.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 2.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on POST. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Post from $108.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Post from $118.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 6th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Post from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their target price on Post from $122.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $124.33.

Post Company Profile

Post Holdings, Inc operates as a consumer packaged goods holding company in the United States and internationally. It operates through four segments: Post Consumer Brands, Weetabix, Foodservice, and Refrigerated Retail. The Post Consumer Brands segment manufactures, markets, and sells branded and private label ready-to-eat (RTE) cereals under Honey Bunches of Oats, Pebbles, and Malt-O-Meal brand names; hot cereal; peanut butter under the Peter Pan brand; and branded and private label dog and cat food products under Rachael Ray Nutrish, Nature's Recipe, 9Lives, Kibbles 'n Bits and Gravy Train brand names.