Pitney Bowes Inc. (NYSE:PBI) Shares Bought by LPL Financial LLC

Key Points

• LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in Pitney Bowes by 50.4%, owning over 351,000 shares worth approximately $3.18 million as of the latest SEC filing.
• Pitney Bowes recently announced an increase in its quarterly dividend from $0.07 to $0.08 per share, reflecting a 2.8% dividend yield.
• The company reported $461.91 million in revenue for the quarter, which was below analyst expectations, and had a negative return on equity of 38.01%.

LPL Financial LLC lifted its position in Pitney Bowes Inc. (NYSE:PBI - Free Report) by 50.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 351,233 shares of the technology company's stock after acquiring an additional 117,636 shares during the quarter. LPL Financial LLC owned 0.19% of Pitney Bowes worth $3,179,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. HB Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Pitney Bowes in the 1st quarter worth approximately $279,000. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its position in shares of Pitney Bowes by 45.7% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 65,508 shares of the technology company's stock worth $593,000 after acquiring an additional 20,536 shares in the last quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. boosted its position in Pitney Bowes by 17.2% during the 1st quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 139,725 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $1,265,000 after purchasing an additional 20,477 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in Pitney Bowes during the 1st quarter worth $98,000. Finally, Jackson Creek Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Pitney Bowes during the 1st quarter worth $1,342,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.88% of the company's stock.

Pitney Bowes Stock Performance

NYSE:PBI opened at $11.29 on Friday. Pitney Bowes Inc. has a 1 year low of $6.22 and a 1 year high of $13.11. The stock has a market cap of $1.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -18.82, a PEG ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 1.54. The business has a fifty day moving average of $11.22 and a 200-day moving average of $9.98.

Pitney Bowes (NYSE:PBI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The technology company reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.27. Pitney Bowes had a negative return on equity of 38.01% and a negative net margin of 5.60%. The business had revenue of $461.91 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $475.92 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.03 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Pitney Bowes Inc. will post 1.21 EPS for the current year.

Pitney Bowes Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. This is a positive change from Pitney Bowes's previous quarterly dividend of $0.07. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 11th. Pitney Bowes's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -53.33%.

Pitney Bowes declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Wednesday, July 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $400.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the technology company to buy up to 18.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Sidoti upgraded Pitney Bowes to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Pitney Bowes from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 15th.

Insider Activity at Pitney Bowes

In related news, EVP Deborah Pfeiffer sold 35,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.14, for a total transaction of $424,900.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 115,405 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,401,016.70. The trade was a 23.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 9.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Pitney Bowes Profile

Pitney Bowes Inc, a shipping and mailing company, provides technology, logistics, and financial services to small and medium-sized businesses, large enterprises, retailers, and government clients in the United States and internationally. It operates through Global Ecommerce, Presort Services, and SendTech Solutions segments.

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