Pitney Bowes Inc. (NYSE:PBI) Stake Reduced by Wealth Effects LLC

Wealth Effects LLC decreased its holdings in Pitney Bowes Inc. (NYSE:PBI - Free Report) by 44.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 89,901 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 72,643 shares during the quarter. Wealth Effects LLC's holdings in Pitney Bowes were worth $814,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Pitney Bowes by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 768,373 shares of the technology company's stock worth $5,563,000 after buying an additional 30,658 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Pitney Bowes by 9.5% during the 4th quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 214,181 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $1,551,000 after acquiring an additional 18,583 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Pitney Bowes by 130.3% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 5,078 shares of the technology company's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 2,873 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Pitney Bowes by 1,356.4% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 474,107 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $3,433,000 after purchasing an additional 441,553 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Pitney Bowes in the 4th quarter valued at $1,068,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.88% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on PBI. Sidoti upgraded Pitney Bowes to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Wall Street Zen lowered Pitney Bowes from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 15th.

Pitney Bowes Stock Up 3.5%

NYSE:PBI traded up $0.37 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $10.95. 2,967,222 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,159,220. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.00 billion, a P/E ratio of -12.03, a P/E/G ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 1.61. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $9.59 and a 200-day simple moving average of $8.96. Pitney Bowes Inc. has a 52 week low of $4.62 and a 52 week high of $11.02.

Pitney Bowes (NYSE:PBI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The technology company reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.28 by $0.05. Pitney Bowes had a negative net margin of 7.18% and a negative return on equity of 31.61%. The firm had revenue of $493.42 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $498.99 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.01) earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Pitney Bowes Inc. will post 1.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Pitney Bowes Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th were issued a $0.07 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.56%. This is a boost from Pitney Bowes's previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. Pitney Bowes's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -30.77%.

Pitney Bowes Company Profile

Pitney Bowes Inc, a shipping and mailing company, provides technology, logistics, and financial services to small and medium-sized businesses, large enterprises, retailers, and government clients in the United States and internationally. It operates through Global Ecommerce, Presort Services, and SendTech Solutions segments.