Principal Financial Group Inc. Decreases Stake in Trex Company, Inc. (NYSE:TREX)

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in Trex Company, Inc. (NYSE:TREX - Free Report) by 1.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 629,017 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 11,864 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.59% of Trex worth $36,546,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in TREX. Huntington National Bank raised its position in Trex by 227.2% during the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 566 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 393 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in Trex by 55.9% during the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,138 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $66,000 after acquiring an additional 408 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Trex by 137.7% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,666 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $97,000 after purchasing an additional 965 shares in the last quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Trex during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $122,000. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Trex by 9.1% during the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 2,034 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $140,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. 95.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Trex Trading Up 1.3%

NYSE TREX traded up $0.75 on Wednesday, hitting $59.37. 48,428 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,442,770. Trex Company, Inc. has a 1-year low of $49.01 and a 1-year high of $86.56. The company has a market cap of $6.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.50. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $57.17 and a two-hundred day moving average of $61.15.

Trex (NYSE:TREX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The construction company reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $339.99 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $329.11 million. Trex had a return on equity of 22.78% and a net margin of 17.69%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.82 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Trex Company, Inc. will post 2.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Amy M. Fernandez sold 2,366 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.17, for a total transaction of $144,728.22. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 24,569 shares in the company, valued at $1,502,885.73. This trade represents a 8.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Jacob T. Rudolph sold 1,500 shares of Trex stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.27, for a total value of $90,405.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 27,527 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,659,052.29. This represents a 5.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.74% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

TREX has been the subject of several recent research reports. Benchmark reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $80.00 target price on shares of Trex in a research report on Monday, May 12th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Trex from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $72.00 target price for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Trex from $78.00 to $60.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Trex from $74.00 to $72.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on shares of Trex from $67.00 to $54.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Trex currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $76.65.

About Trex

Trex Company, Inc manufactures and distributes composite decking, railing, and outdoor living products and accessories for residential and commercial markets in the United States. It offers decking products and accessories under the names Trex Transcend, Trex Select, Trex Signature, Trex Transcend Lineage, and Trex Enhance for protection against fading, staining, mold, and scratching; Trex Hideaway, a hidden fastening system; and Trex DeckLighting, a LED dimmable deck lighting for use on posts, floors, and steps.