Handelsbanken Fonder AB Acquires 79,197 Shares of Pentair plc $PNR

Key Points

• Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its Pentair stake by 77.7% in the fourth quarter, buying 79,197 shares and bringing its total holding to 181,061 shares worth about $18.9 million.
• Pentair reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $1.22 versus estimates of $1.17 and revenue of $1.04 billion versus $1.03 billion expected, with revenue up 2.6% year over year.
• The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.27 per share, implying an annualized payout of $1.08 and a dividend yield of 1.5%.

Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its holdings in shares of Pentair plc (NYSE:PNR - Free Report) by 77.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 181,061 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 79,197 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB owned about 0.11% of Pentair worth $18,856,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Avanza Fonder AB increased its holdings in Pentair by 142.1% in the fourth quarter. Avanza Fonder AB now owns 38,940 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $4,055,000 after purchasing an additional 22,858 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in shares of Pentair by 13.1% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,638,855 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $274,810,000 after buying an additional 305,166 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in shares of Pentair by 22.8% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,484,915 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $366,787,000 after buying an additional 647,162 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in shares of Pentair by 624.2% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 362,648 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $37,766,000 after acquiring an additional 312,574 shares during the last quarter. Finally, IMC Chicago LLC bought a new position in shares of Pentair during the third quarter worth about $1,635,000. 92.37% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Pentair Stock Performance

Shares of Pentair stock opened at $74.12 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $85.05 and a 200 day simple moving average of $96.97. Pentair plc has a one year low of $70.73 and a one year high of $113.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 1.88 and a quick ratio of 1.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.17, a PEG ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.10.

Pentair (NYSE:PNR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.17 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $1.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.03 billion. Pentair had a return on equity of 21.92% and a net margin of 15.98%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.11 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Pentair plc will post 5.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pentair Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 7th. Investors of record on Friday, July 24th will be given a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 24th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. Pentair's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.47%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on PNR shares. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $125.00 target price (down from $135.00) on shares of Pentair in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Pentair from $112.00 to $106.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Pentair from $95.00 to $92.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Pentair from $100.00 to $88.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Oppenheimer cut their price target on shares of Pentair from $122.00 to $115.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $107.86.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Pentair news, EVP Philip M. Rolchigo sold 6,493 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.22, for a total transaction of $670,207.46. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 29,096 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,003,289.12. The trade was a 18.24% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.26% of the company's stock.

Pentair Profile

Pentair plc NYSE: PNR is a global provider of water treatment and fluid management solutions. The company designs, manufactures and sells a broad range of products that move, treat, monitor and control the flow of water and other fluids across residential, commercial, industrial and municipal markets. Pentair's offerings are focused on improving water quality, conserving resources and enabling efficient fluid handling in applications from household water systems and pools to large-scale industrial and municipal installations.

Product lines include pumps and pumping systems, water filtration and purification equipment, valves and controls, heat exchangers, pool and spa systems, and a range of aftermarket parts and services.

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