Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $16.30 Million Stake in Via Transportation Inc. $VIA

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group boosted its Via Transportation stake by 39.6% in Q1, ending with 1.09 million shares valued at about $16.3 million.
• Institutional ownership in Via remains high, with hedge funds and other institutional investors holding 74.4% of the company’s stock. Several other funds also added positions during the quarter.
• Wall Street sentiment is still constructive overall: analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $37.10, even as the stock trades well below that level and faces class-action lawsuit headlines tied to its IPO disclosures.

Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Via Transportation Inc. (NYSE:VIA - Free Report) by 39.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,086,438 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 308,283 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 1.34% of Via Transportation worth $16,297,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Via Transportation by 43.3% in the first quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 335,591 shares of the company's stock worth $5,034,000 after buying an additional 101,380 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC acquired a new position in Via Transportation during the first quarter valued at $523,000. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Via Transportation in the 1st quarter worth about $202,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in Via Transportation in the 4th quarter worth about $49,000. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new stake in Via Transportation during the 4th quarter worth about $1,139,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.40% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on VIA shares. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $24.00 target price on shares of Via Transportation in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Via Transportation from a "sell (e+)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and set a $50.00 price target on shares of Via Transportation in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Via Transportation from $36.00 to $30.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Oppenheimer reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $25.00 price objective on shares of Via Transportation in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $37.10.

Insider Activity at Via Transportation

In other Via Transportation news, Director Nechemia Jacob Peres bought 25,000 shares of Via Transportation stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 9th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $14.70 per share, for a total transaction of $367,500.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 30,434 shares of the company's stock, valued at $447,379.80. The trade was a 460.07% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Daniel Ramot bought 3,571 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $14.00 per share, with a total value of $49,994.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,420,957 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $33,893,398. This represents a 0.15% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders purchased 31,904 shares of company stock valued at $467,289. 39.28% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Trending Headlines about Via Transportation

Here are the key news stories impacting Via Transportation this week:

• Negative Sentiment: Multiple law firms reiterated that a class action has been filed against Via Transportation and certain officers, alleging violations of federal securities laws related to IPO offering materials. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Several notices emphasized that investors who bought VIA shares in or around the IPO may have lost money and can seek lead-plaintiff status, reinforcing concerns about litigation exposure. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: One filing framed the lawsuit as stemming from alleged “land and expand” growth claims that supposedly masked regulatory barriers, suggesting the stock’s prior weakness may be tied to operational and disclosure concerns. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Additional firms including Robbins Geller, Rosen, Pomerantz, Portnoy, Gross, SueWallSt, and Faruqi & Faruqi issued deadline reminders and case updates, but these were largely procedural rather than new company-specific developments. Article Title

Via Transportation Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VIA opened at $17.45 on Thursday. Via Transportation Inc. has a one year low of $12.95 and a one year high of $56.31. The business's 50-day moving average price is $16.24 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $17.86. The company has a market capitalization of $1.42 billion and a P/E ratio of -18.77.

About Via Transportation

Via transforms antiquated and siloed public transportation systems into smart, data-driven, and efficient digital networks. We are addressing a striking gap in the $545 billion global public transportation market. While billions of people across the globe rely on public transportation, this critical form of mobility has yet to meaningfully benefit from recent advances in technology. Buses still follow fixed routes and schedules planned years, if not decades ago, regardless of actual demand for their service.

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