Principal Financial Group Inc. Boosts Holdings in PENN Entertainment, Inc. (NASDAQ:PENN)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of PENN Entertainment, Inc. (NASDAQ:PENN - Free Report) by 2.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 742,899 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 17,752 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.49% of PENN Entertainment worth $12,117,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Teacher Retirement System of Texas acquired a new stake in shares of PENN Entertainment during the first quarter worth $344,000. J.Safra Asset Management Corp lifted its position in PENN Entertainment by 6.7% during the first quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp now owns 13,877 shares of the company's stock valued at $226,000 after purchasing an additional 877 shares during the period. KBC Group NV lifted its position in PENN Entertainment by 42.2% during the first quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 7,824 shares of the company's stock valued at $128,000 after purchasing an additional 2,323 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lifted its position in PENN Entertainment by 10.7% during the first quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 98,134 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,601,000 after purchasing an additional 9,486 shares during the period. Finally, New World Advisors LLC lifted its position in PENN Entertainment by 18.8% during the first quarter. New World Advisors LLC now owns 20,900 shares of the company's stock valued at $341,000 after purchasing an additional 3,300 shares during the period. 91.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director David A. Handler purchased 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $14.83 per share, with a total value of $148,300.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 322,941 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,789,215.03. This represents a 3.20% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Jay A. Snowden purchased 34,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $14.70 per share, with a total value of $499,800.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 1,082,625 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,914,587.50. This trade represents a 3.24% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 2.67% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

PENN Entertainment Price Performance

NASDAQ PENN traded up $0.68 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $18.25. 4,296,071 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,828,904. PENN Entertainment, Inc. has a 52-week low of $13.25 and a 52-week high of $23.08. The company has a market capitalization of $2.76 billion, a PE ratio of -29.44 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.35, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.74. The firm's 50-day moving average is $16.66 and its 200-day moving average is $17.65.

PENN Entertainment (NASDAQ:PENN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported ($0.25) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.29) by $0.04. PENN Entertainment had a negative net margin of 1.28% and a negative return on equity of 5.75%. The company had revenue of $1.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.71 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($0.76) EPS. PENN Entertainment's revenue was up 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that PENN Entertainment, Inc. will post -1.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on PENN shares. Citigroup upgraded shares of PENN Entertainment to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Benchmark reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of PENN Entertainment in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their price objective on shares of PENN Entertainment from $28.00 to $26.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on shares of PENN Entertainment from $23.00 to $20.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on shares of PENN Entertainment in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $24.00 price objective for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $23.18.

PENN Entertainment Company Profile

PENN Entertainment, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides integrated entertainment, sports content, and casino gaming experiences. The company operates through five segments: Northeast, South, West, Midwest, and Interactive. It operates online sports betting in various jurisdictions; and iCasino under Hollywood Casino, L'Auberge, ESPN BET, and theScore Bet Sportsbook and Casino brands.