Donaldson Company, Inc. $DCI Shares Sold by Legal & General Group Plc

Key Points

• Legal & General Group Plc reduced its stake in Donaldson Company by 17.1% in the fourth quarter, selling 37,691 shares and leaving it with 182,157 shares valued at about $16.15 million.
• Donaldson raised its quarterly dividend to $0.32 per share from $0.30, putting the annualized payout at $1.28 per share and a yield of 1.6%.
• Analysts currently have a mixed outlook on the stock: two rate it Buy and three Hold, with an average target price of $100.20 versus the recent share price around $81.76.

Legal & General Group Plc cut its position in shares of Donaldson Company, Inc. (NYSE:DCI - Free Report) by 17.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 182,157 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 37,691 shares during the quarter. Legal & General Group Plc owned about 0.16% of Donaldson worth $16,150,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in Donaldson by 5.4% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 490,001 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $40,108,000 after acquiring an additional 25,156 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in Donaldson by 3,094.9% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 44,377 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $3,934,000 after acquiring an additional 42,988 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in Donaldson by 10.6% during the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,283,326 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $105,040,000 after acquiring an additional 123,000 shares during the last quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP acquired a new stake in Donaldson during the fourth quarter worth about $1,494,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Donaldson by 1.0% during the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,994,211 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $163,218,000 after acquiring an additional 20,478 shares during the last quarter. 82.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Donaldson Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of DCI opened at $81.76 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $9.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.55, a P/E/G ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.99. Donaldson Company, Inc. has a one year low of $67.71 and a one year high of $112.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a current ratio of 2.29. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $85.78 and a 200 day moving average price of $91.80.

Donaldson Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. This is a boost from Donaldson's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Donaldson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Donaldson news, Director James Owens sold 13,753 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.21, for a total transaction of $1,226,905.13. Following the transaction, the director owned 22,565 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,013,023.65. This trade represents a 37.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 19,800 shares of company stock worth $1,765,184. Company insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded Donaldson from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, March 7th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Donaldson from $93.00 to $91.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 9th. UBS Group set a $96.00 target price on Donaldson in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Donaldson from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Donaldson to $123.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Donaldson presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $100.20.

Donaldson Profile

Donaldson Company, Inc NYSE: DCI is a global provider of filtration systems and replacement parts for a wide range of industries. The company develops and manufactures air, liquid and gas filtration solutions for engine and industrial applications, helping customers improve performance, lower emissions and extend equipment life. Donaldson's product portfolio includes engine air intake filters, fuel filters, hydraulic filters, compressor filters, dust collection systems and gas turbine air intake systems.

Serving markets such as agriculture, construction, mining, power generation, aerospace and original equipment manufacturing, Donaldson operates through two primary business segments: Engine Products and Industrial Products.

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