Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 72,798 Shares of PACCAR Inc. $PCAR

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group reduced its PACCAR stake by 2.5% in the first quarter, selling 72,798 shares and still holding 2,895,490 shares worth about $334.4 million.
• Wall Street sentiment on PACCAR remains cautious: the stock has a consensus rating of Hold with an average price target of $123.82, even after several analysts reiterated neutral or equal-weight views.
• PACCAR reported Q1 EPS of $1.15, matching expectations, while revenue of $6.78 billion beat estimates but fell 9.8% from a year earlier; the company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.35 per share.

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its position in shares of PACCAR Inc. (NASDAQ:PCAR - Free Report) by 2.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,895,490 shares of the company's stock after selling 72,798 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.55% of PACCAR worth $334,429,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PCAR. Ares Financial Consulting LLC bought a new stake in shares of PACCAR in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. MCF Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of PACCAR by 57.5% in the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 252 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the period. Steph & Co. acquired a new stake in PACCAR in the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new stake in PACCAR during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Wealth Watch Advisors INC bought a new stake in shares of PACCAR during the third quarter worth about $32,000. 64.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on PCAR shares. Weiss Ratings cut PACCAR from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Wells Fargo & Company set a $125.00 price target on shares of PACCAR and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. BNP Paribas Exane started coverage on PACCAR in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. They set a "neutral" rating and a $126.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $125.00 price objective (down from $130.00) on shares of PACCAR in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Evercore set a $139.00 price objective on shares of PACCAR in a report on Monday, May 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, PACCAR has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $123.82.

PACCAR Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of PCAR opened at $123.94 on Wednesday. PACCAR Inc. has a 1-year low of $92.25 and a 1-year high of $131.88. The company has a market capitalization of $65.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.37, a P/E/G ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 3.11 and a quick ratio of 2.91. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $116.70 and its 200 day simple moving average is $119.37.

PACCAR (NASDAQ:PCAR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.15. The firm had revenue of $6.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.44 billion. PACCAR had a return on equity of 12.81% and a net margin of 8.91%.The company's revenue for the quarter was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.46 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that PACCAR Inc. will post 5.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PACCAR Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 12th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 12th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. PACCAR's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.79%.

PACCAR Profile

PACCAR Inc is a global technology leader in the design, manufacture and customer support of light-, medium- and heavy-duty commercial vehicles. The company's products are marketed under well-known brand names including Kenworth, Peterbilt and DAF and span vocational and long-haul applications. PACCAR's core business includes vehicle engineering and assembly as well as the supply of components and proprietary powertrain systems designed to meet regulatory and customer performance requirements.

In addition to truck manufacturing, PACCAR operates a comprehensive aftermarket parts business, distributes used trucks and provides commercial vehicle financing and leasing through its financial services operations.

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