Norges Bank Takes $128.28 Million Position in T. Rowe Price Group, Inc. $TROW

Key Points

• Norges Bank disclosed a new fourth-quarter stake in T. Rowe Price Group, buying 1,253,007 shares valued at about $128.28 million, or 0.57% of the company.
• T. Rowe Price reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $2.52 versus $2.37 expected and revenue of $1.86 billion, up 5.3% year over year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, implying a 4.9% annualized yield; meanwhile, analysts currently have a consensus rating of “Reduce” with an average target price of $99.54.

Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of T. Rowe Price Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:TROW - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 1,253,007 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $128,283,000. Norges Bank owned 0.57% of T. Rowe Price Group as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Woodline Partners LP lifted its holdings in shares of T. Rowe Price Group by 41.0% in the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 18,809 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $1,728,000 after buying an additional 5,467 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth grew its stake in T. Rowe Price Group by 10.6% during the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 13,054 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $1,199,000 after acquiring an additional 1,250 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in T. Rowe Price Group by 44.8% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,546 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $149,000 after acquiring an additional 478 shares in the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC bought a new stake in T. Rowe Price Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $931,000. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its stake in T. Rowe Price Group by 5.4% in the 2nd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 33,245 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $3,208,000 after purchasing an additional 1,703 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.39% of the company's stock.

T. Rowe Price Group Price Performance

Shares of T. Rowe Price Group stock opened at $106.96 on Friday. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $98.73 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $99.26. T. Rowe Price Group, Inc. has a one year low of $85.22 and a one year high of $118.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.32 and a beta of 1.50.

T. Rowe Price Group (NASDAQ:TROW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The asset manager reported $2.52 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.37 by $0.15. T. Rowe Price Group had a return on equity of 20.60% and a net margin of 28.28%.The business had revenue of $1.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.85 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.23 EPS. T. Rowe Price Group's quarterly revenue was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that T. Rowe Price Group, Inc. will post 9.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

T. Rowe Price Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 29th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. T. Rowe Price Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 55.73%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Stephon A. Jackson sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.56, for a total value of $307,680.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 83,883 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,603,040.48. This trade represents a 3.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 1.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on TROW shares. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of T. Rowe Price Group from $93.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley set a $105.00 price objective on T. Rowe Price Group in a research note on Monday, April 27th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on T. Rowe Price Group from $98.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on T. Rowe Price Group from $106.00 to $103.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on T. Rowe Price Group from $106.00 to $100.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, T. Rowe Price Group has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $99.54.

T. Rowe Price Group Company Profile

T. Rowe Price Group, Inc is a global investment management firm headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland, founded by Thomas Rowe Price Jr. in 1937. The company provides a broad range of investment products and services for individual investors, financial intermediaries, retirement plan sponsors and institutional clients. Its offerings are built around active investment management and in-house research across equity, fixed income and multi-asset strategies, reflecting a long history as a research-driven asset manager.

The firm's product lineup includes mutual funds, separate accounts, collective investment trusts, target-date and target-risk funds, and managed account solutions, as well as services for defined contribution and defined benefit retirement plans.

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