Vestcor Inc Reduces Holdings in Parker-Hannifin Corporation $PH

Key Points

• Vestcor Inc. cut its stake in Parker-Hannifin by 30.0% in Q3, selling 1,762 shares and leaving it with 4,104 shares valued at about $3.11 million.
• Company insiders have been active sellers — including the VP and COO — with 12,551 shares sold in the past 90 days (≈$12.12 million), leaving insiders owning just 0.32% of the stock.
• Despite the ownership moves, analysts remain broadly positive: the stock holds a “Moderate Buy” consensus (16 Buys vs. 5 Holds) with a mean target of about $995.37, and Parker‑Hannifin recently beat quarterly EPS and revenue estimates ($7.65 EPS vs. $7.11 expected) and pays a $1.80 quarterly dividend.

Vestcor Inc decreased its stake in Parker-Hannifin Corporation (NYSE:PH - Free Report) by 30.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,104 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 1,762 shares during the quarter. Vestcor Inc's holdings in Parker-Hannifin were worth $3,111,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Chilton Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Parker-Hannifin during the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. raised its holdings in Parker-Hannifin by 366.7% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 42 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the period. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Parker-Hannifin in the 3rd quarter worth about $36,000. State of Wyoming bought a new stake in Parker-Hannifin in the second quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Financial Consulate Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Parker-Hannifin during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $47,000. 82.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Parker-Hannifin from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Parker-Hannifin from $990.00 to $1,020.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Parker-Hannifin in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Citigroup upped their target price on Parker-Hannifin from $1,074.00 to $1,092.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Susquehanna reiterated a "positive" rating and issued a $1,000.00 price target on shares of Parker-Hannifin in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Parker-Hannifin presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $995.37.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Parker-Hannifin news, VP Matthew A. Jacobson sold 564 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $949.94, for a total value of $535,766.16. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 1,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $949,940. This represents a 36.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, COO Andrew D. Ross sold 4,664 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $999.00, for a total value of $4,659,336.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 13,120 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,106,880. This represents a 26.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 12,551 shares of company stock valued at $12,117,502. Insiders own 0.32% of the company's stock.

Parker-Hannifin Stock Up 1.9%

PH stock opened at $949.78 on Wednesday. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $958.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $856.23. The company has a market capitalization of $119.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 0.66. Parker-Hannifin Corporation has a 12 month low of $488.45 and a 12 month high of $1,034.96.

Parker-Hannifin (NYSE:PH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $7.65 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $7.11 by $0.54. The business had revenue of $5.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.07 billion. Parker-Hannifin had a net margin of 17.29% and a return on equity of 27.56%. The business's revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $6.53 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Parker-Hannifin Corporation will post 26.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Parker-Hannifin Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 6th. Investors of record on Friday, February 6th were paid a dividend of $1.80 per share. This represents a $7.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 6th. Parker-Hannifin's dividend payout ratio is currently 26.26%.

About Parker-Hannifin

Parker-Hannifin Corporation NYSE: PH is a global manufacturer and provider of motion and control technologies and systems. The company designs, manufactures and services a broad range of engineered components and systems used to control the movement and flow of liquids, gases and hydraulic power. Its product portfolio is applied across demanding environments and includes solutions for industrial manufacturing, aerospace, mobile equipment and other engineered applications.

Parker-Hannifin's product and service offerings span hydraulic and pneumatic components, fittings and fluid connectors, valves, pumps and motors, electromechanical actuators and motion-control systems, filtration and separation products, and seals and sealing systems.

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