Principal Financial Group Inc. Boosts Stock Holdings in HP Inc. $HPQ

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group increased its HP Inc. stake by 4.5% in the first quarter, ending with 1,106,790 shares valued at about $21.3 million.
• HP reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $0.86 versus $0.72 expected and revenue of $14.41 billion, up 9% year over year.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share and highlighted a 4.8% annualized yield, while analysts currently have a consensus rating of "Reduce" with a $23.33 price target.

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in HP Inc. (NYSE:HPQ - Free Report) by 4.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,106,790 shares of the computer maker's stock after acquiring an additional 47,878 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.12% of HP worth $21,261,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Garner Asset Management Corp purchased a new stake in HP during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of HP in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. SHP Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of HP in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its position in shares of HP by 97.0% during the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 1,312 shares of the computer maker's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 646 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Union Savings Bank purchased a new stake in shares of HP during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. 77.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of HP from $22.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of HP from $20.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of HP from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of HP from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of HP from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $23.33.

HP Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE HPQ opened at $24.79 on Wednesday. HP Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $17.56 and a fifty-two week high of $29.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.67 billion, a PE ratio of 9.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.09 and a beta of 1.19. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $23.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $21.13.

HP (NYSE:HPQ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 27th. The computer maker reported $0.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $14.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.99 billion. HP had a negative return on equity of 581.36% and a net margin of 4.45%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.71 earnings per share. HP has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.900-3.100 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.610-0.710 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that HP Inc. will post 2.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

HP Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 9th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.8%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 9th. HP's payout ratio is currently 44.28%.

Insider Activity

In other HP news, insider David P. Mcquarrie sold 10,524 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.68, for a total transaction of $259,732.32. Following the transaction, the insider owned 92,200 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,275,496. This trade represents a 10.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

About HP

HP Inc is an American multinational information technology company that designs, manufactures and sells personal computing devices, printers and related supplies and services. Its product portfolio spans consumer and commercial notebooks and desktops, workstations, displays and accessories, as well as an extensive line of printing hardware that includes home, office and production printers. HP also provides consumables such as ink and toner, managed print services, device deployment and lifecycle support, and software for device and print management.

Founded from the original Hewlett‑Packard Company, HP Inc became a separately traded public company in 2015 following a corporate split that created Hewlett Packard Enterprise to focus on enterprise hardware and services.

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