Perrigo Company plc $PRGO Shares Acquired by Bahl & Gaynor Inc.

Key Points

• Bahl & Gaynor Inc. increased its stake in Perrigo Company plc by 40.7%, owning approximately 1.56% of the company with a value of $60.2 million as of their latest SEC filing.
• Perrigo announced a quarterly dividend of $0.29 per share, equating to an annualized yield of 4.7%, with the payment set for September 16th.
• JPMorgan and Canaccord Genuity reduced their price targets for Perrigo from $38 to $35 and from $42 to $40, respectively, while Wall Street Zen upgraded the stock from a "hold" to a "buy" rating.

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. grew its stake in Perrigo Company plc (NYSE:PRGO - Free Report) by 40.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,146,352 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 621,155 shares during the quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. owned approximately 1.56% of Perrigo worth $60,184,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. American Assets Inc. acquired a new stake in Perrigo during the fourth quarter worth about $386,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Perrigo during the fourth quarter worth about $3,177,000. Barclays PLC raised its stake in Perrigo by 90.0% during the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 228,908 shares of the company's stock worth $5,886,000 after acquiring an additional 108,406 shares during the period. Mariner LLC acquired a new stake in Perrigo during the fourth quarter worth about $215,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP grew its position in Perrigo by 500.6% in the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 166,863 shares of the company's stock worth $4,290,000 after purchasing an additional 139,080 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.91% of the company's stock.

Perrigo Trading Up 4.5%

Shares of NYSE:PRGO opened at $24.4940 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -42.23 and a beta of 0.47. Perrigo Company plc has a 1-year low of $21.03 and a 1-year high of $30.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 2.32. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $26.08 and a 200 day moving average price of $26.22.

Perrigo (NYSE:PRGO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.57 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.59 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $1.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.08 billion. Perrigo had a positive return on equity of 9.09% and a negative net margin of 1.86%.The company's quarterly revenue was down .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.53 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Perrigo Company plc will post 2.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Perrigo Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 29th. Perrigo's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -200.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Perrigo from $38.00 to $35.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their target price on shares of Perrigo from $42.00 to $40.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Perrigo from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $33.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Perrigo news, EVP Robert Willis bought 1,488 shares of Perrigo stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 22nd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $24.10 per share, for a total transaction of $35,860.80. Following the completion of the acquisition, the executive vice president owned 41,939 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,010,729.90. This represents a 3.68% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Eduardo Guarita Bezerra bought 3,000 shares of Perrigo stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 18th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $22.74 per share, with a total value of $68,220.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief financial officer directly owned 48,949 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,113,100.26. This represents a 6.53% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders acquired 8,863 shares of company stock worth $204,575. Corporate insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.

Perrigo Profile

Perrigo Company plc provides over-the-counter health and wellness solutions to enhance individual well-being in the United States, Europe, and internationally. It operates through Consumer Self-Care Americas and Consumer Self-Care International segments. The company develops, manufactures, markets, and distributes self-care consumer products, such as upper respiratory products, including cough suppressants, expectorants, and sinus and allergy relief; nutrition products consisting of infant formulas and nutritional beverages; digestive health products, including antacids, anti-diarrheal, and anti-heartburn; pain and sleep-aids products comprising pain relievers and fever reducers; and oral care products, which include toothbrushes, toothbrush replacement heads, floss, flossers, whitening products, and toothbrush covers.

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