Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. Lowers Stock Position in Garmin Ltd. (NYSE:GRMN)

Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Garmin Ltd. (NYSE:GRMN - Free Report) by 4.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 32,607 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after selling 1,650 shares during the period. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Garmin were worth $7,080,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd increased its position in shares of Garmin by 864.3% during the fourth quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 135 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new position in Garmin in the 1st quarter worth about $40,000. Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new position in Garmin during the 4th quarter valued at about $46,000. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Garmin during the 4th quarter valued at about $47,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Garmin by 26.8% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 241 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.60% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on GRMN. Barclays lowered their target price on Garmin from $188.00 to $152.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Garmin from $159.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Garmin from $220.00 to $215.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $206.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Clifton A. Pemble sold 7,899 shares of Garmin stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $203.25, for a total transaction of $1,605,471.75. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 141,626 shares in the company, valued at $28,785,484.50. This trade represents a 5.28% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 15.38% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Garmin Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GRMN traded up $3.34 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $208.49. The stock had a trading volume of 1,109,820 shares, compared to its average volume of 903,061. The company has a market capitalization of $40.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.98. Garmin Ltd. has a 12-month low of $158.90 and a 12-month high of $246.50. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $199.71 and a 200-day moving average of $207.12.

Garmin (NYSE:GRMN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by ($0.01). Garmin had a net margin of 22.76% and a return on equity of 19.21%. The business had revenue of $1.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.50 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.42 EPS. Garmin's revenue for the quarter was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Garmin Ltd. will post 7.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Garmin Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a dividend of $0.90 per share. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.73%. Garmin's dividend payout ratio is currently 47.37%.

Garmin Profile

Garmin Ltd. designs, develops, manufactures, markets, and distributes a range of wireless devices worldwide. Its Fitness segment offers running and multi-sport watches; cycling products; smartwatch devices; scales and monitors; and fitness accessories. This segment also provides Garmin Connect and Garmin Connect Mobile, which are web and mobile platforms where users can track and analyze their fitness, activities and workouts, and wellness data; and Connect IQ, an application development platform.