Legal & General Group Plc Acquires 35,239 Shares of Parker-Hannifin Corporation $PH

Key Points

• Legal & General increased its stake in Parker-Hannifin by 35,239 shares (up 4.9%) to 753,118 shares, representing about 0.60% of the company and valued at roughly $571 million.
• Company insiders have been net sellers recently — VP Berend Bracht sold 1,457 shares and COO Andrew D. Ross sold 4,664 shares, with insiders disposing of 12,551 shares worth about $12.12 million in the last 90 days.
• Analysts have lifted price targets and the stock carries a consensus Moderate Buy rating with an average target of $995.37, and several firms raising targets to the $1,050–1,100 range.

Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in Parker-Hannifin Corporation (NYSE:PH - Free Report) by 4.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 753,118 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 35,239 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc owned about 0.60% of Parker-Hannifin worth $570,976,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Chilton Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Parker-Hannifin in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. raised its position in Parker-Hannifin by 366.7% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 42 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the period. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. purchased a new stake in Parker-Hannifin in the third quarter worth $36,000. State of Wyoming purchased a new position in shares of Parker-Hannifin during the second quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Financial Consulate Inc. bought a new stake in Parker-Hannifin during the 3rd quarter valued at $47,000. 82.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Parker-Hannifin

In other Parker-Hannifin news, VP Berend Bracht sold 1,457 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $946.48, for a total value of $1,379,021.36. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 2,580 shares in the company, valued at $2,441,918.40. This represents a 36.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Andrew D. Ross sold 4,664 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $999.00, for a total transaction of $4,659,336.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 13,120 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,106,880. This represents a 26.23% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 12,551 shares of company stock worth $12,117,502. 0.32% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PH has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Parker-Hannifin from $1,050.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Parker-Hannifin from $1,083.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Parker-Hannifin from $1,074.00 to $1,092.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Parker-Hannifin from $1,000.00 to $1,050.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Parker-Hannifin in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $995.37.

Parker-Hannifin Trading Up 1.9%

Shares of NYSE:PH opened at $949.78 on Wednesday. Parker-Hannifin Corporation has a 52 week low of $488.45 and a 52 week high of $1,034.96. The company's 50 day moving average is $958.04 and its two-hundred day moving average is $856.23. The company has a market cap of $119.88 billion, a PE ratio of 34.64, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a current ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52.

Parker-Hannifin (NYSE:PH - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $7.65 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $7.11 by $0.54. Parker-Hannifin had a net margin of 17.29% and a return on equity of 27.56%. The firm had revenue of $5.17 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $6.53 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Parker-Hannifin Corporation will post 26.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Parker-Hannifin Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 6th were issued a $1.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 6th. This represents a $7.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Parker-Hannifin's dividend payout ratio is presently 26.26%.

Parker-Hannifin Profile

Parker-Hannifin Corporation NYSE: PH is a global manufacturer and provider of motion and control technologies and systems. The company designs, manufactures and services a broad range of engineered components and systems used to control the movement and flow of liquids, gases and hydraulic power. Its product portfolio is applied across demanding environments and includes solutions for industrial manufacturing, aerospace, mobile equipment and other engineered applications.

Parker-Hannifin's product and service offerings span hydraulic and pneumatic components, fittings and fluid connectors, valves, pumps and motors, electromechanical actuators and motion-control systems, filtration and separation products, and seals and sealing systems.

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