Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Sells 569,531 Shares of Pitney Bowes Inc. $PBI

Key Points

• Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. sold 569,531 shares of Pitney Bowes Inc., reducing its stake by 24.8% to a total of 1,726,734 shares.
• In the 4th quarter, several institutional investors increased their holdings in Pitney Bowes, with American Assets Inc. boosting its stake by 80.6%.
• Pitney Bowes recently announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.08 per share, along with a $400 million share buyback program, indicating confidence in the company's shares.

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Pitney Bowes Inc. (NYSE:PBI - Free Report) by 24.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,726,734 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 569,531 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned 0.94% of Pitney Bowes worth $15,627,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. American Assets Inc. boosted its holdings in Pitney Bowes by 80.6% in the 4th quarter. American Assets Inc. now owns 130,000 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $941,000 after purchasing an additional 58,000 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its holdings in Pitney Bowes by 17.0% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 126,424 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $915,000 after purchasing an additional 18,373 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its holdings in Pitney Bowes by 8.6% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 37,259 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $270,000 after purchasing an additional 2,962 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Pitney Bowes in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,068,000. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in Pitney Bowes by 14.5% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 317,594 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $2,299,000 after purchasing an additional 40,125 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 67.88% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on PBI. Sidoti raised shares of Pitney Bowes to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Pitney Bowes from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, Pitney Bowes currently has an average rating of "Hold".

Insider Transactions at Pitney Bowes

In related news, EVP Deborah Pfeiffer sold 35,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.14, for a total transaction of $424,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 115,405 shares in the company, valued at $1,401,016.70. This represents a 23.27% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 9.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Pitney Bowes Trading Up 4.6%

Shares of Pitney Bowes stock opened at $11.8250 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $11.32 and a 200-day moving average of $10.06. Pitney Bowes Inc. has a 1-year low of $6.22 and a 1-year high of $13.11. The company has a market cap of $2.04 billion, a PE ratio of -19.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 1.54.

Pitney Bowes (NYSE:PBI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The technology company reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.27. Pitney Bowes had a negative net margin of 5.60% and a negative return on equity of 38.01%. The company had revenue of $461.91 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $475.92 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.03 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. Pitney Bowes has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.200-1.400 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Pitney Bowes Inc. will post 1.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Pitney Bowes Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 8th. Investors of record on Monday, August 11th will be given a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 11th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. This is a positive change from Pitney Bowes's previous quarterly dividend of $0.07. Pitney Bowes's dividend payout ratio is currently -53.33%.

Pitney Bowes declared that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, July 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $400.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the technology company to repurchase up to 18.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Pitney Bowes Profile

Pitney Bowes Inc, a shipping and mailing company, provides technology, logistics, and financial services to small and medium-sized businesses, large enterprises, retailers, and government clients in the United States and internationally. It operates through Global Ecommerce, Presort Services, and SendTech Solutions segments.

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