Harris Associates L P Lowers Stock Holdings in Grifols, S.A. $GRFS

Key Points

• Harris Associates L P reduced its stake in Grifols, S.A. by 7.7%, now owning approximately 3,439,000 shares valued at $24,451,000 after selling 284,900 shares in the first quarter.
• Other investors such as Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management and Cerity Partners increased their holdings in Grifols, with Cerity Partners raising theirs by 22.8%.
• Grifols declared a special dividend of $0.1404 per share, paid to shareholders on August 20th, with a current payout ratio of 11.97%.

Harris Associates L P cut its holdings in Grifols, S.A. (NASDAQ:GRFS - Free Report) by 7.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,439,000 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 284,900 shares during the period. Harris Associates L P owned about 0.50% of Grifols worth $24,451,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in GRFS. Versant Capital Management Inc bought a new stake in shares of Grifols in the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its holdings in shares of Grifols by 354.1% in the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 8,124 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $60,000 after buying an additional 6,335 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP bought a new stake in shares of Grifols in the 4th quarter worth about $75,000. Ballentine Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Grifols in the 1st quarter worth about $77,000. Finally, Principal Street Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Grifols in the 4th quarter worth about $84,000.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on GRFS. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Grifols from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Grifols from $7.60 to $10.30 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Grifols to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Grifols in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $10.30.

Grifols Trading Up 2.3%

NASDAQ:GRFS traded up $0.23 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $10.13. 422,562 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 785,985. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.66, a PEG ratio of 0.34 and a beta of 0.64. Grifols, S.A. has a 52 week low of $6.19 and a 52 week high of $11.14. The firm's 50 day moving average is $10.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $8.56. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 2.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20.

Grifols Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a special dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 12th were given a $0.1404 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 12th. Grifols's payout ratio is 11.97%.

Grifols Company Profile

Grifols, SA operates as a plasma therapeutic company in Spain, the United States, Canada, and internationally. The company provides immunoglobulin to treat immunodeficiencies; albumin used to restore circulatory volume and protein loss in pathophysiological conditions, such as liver cirrhosis, cardiocirculatory failure, trauma and severe burns; alpha-1 proteinase inhibitor, a plasma protein, used to treat a genetic disease known as alpha-1; factorVIII/von Willerbrand factor and factor IX, clotting factors for the treatment of hemophilia A and von Willebrand's disease, as well as hemophilia B; antithrombin III to treat hereditary antithrombin deficiency; Fostamatinib, a spleen tyrosine kinase inhibitor; combination of fibrinogen and enzyme thrombin that acts as a biological sealant to control surgical bleeding; and plasma exchange with albumin used to treat Alzheimer's disease.