Perrigo (NYSE:PRGO) Shares Gap Up on Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Shares of Perrigo Company plc (NYSE:PRGO - Get Free Report) gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock had previously closed at $24.68, but opened at $26.00. Perrigo shares last traded at $26.09, with a volume of 568,880 shares trading hands.

The company reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.09 billion. Perrigo had a negative net margin of 3.64% and a positive return on equity of 7.38%. Perrigo's revenue for the quarter was down 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.29 earnings per share.

Perrigo Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be given a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.30%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. Perrigo's payout ratio is currently -88.55%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on PRGO. Argus cut shares of Perrigo from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. StockNews.com cut shares of Perrigo from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Perrigo presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $33.00.

Insider Activity at Perrigo

In other news, EVP Ronald Craig Janish sold 7,800 shares of Perrigo stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.44, for a total value of $214,032.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 33,666 shares of the company's stock, valued at $923,795.04. The trade was a 18.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Perrigo

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Headlands Technologies LLC lifted its stake in Perrigo by 1,942.0% during the 4th quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 1,409 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 1,340 shares during the period. Picton Mahoney Asset Management acquired a new position in Perrigo during the first quarter worth $42,000. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its position in Perrigo by 176.9% during the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,714 shares of the company's stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 1,095 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Perrigo by 138.3% in the first quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,754 shares of the company's stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 1,018 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Perrigo by 93.7% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,920 shares of the company's stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 929 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.91% of the company's stock.

Perrigo Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 2.56 and a quick ratio of 1.77. The stock's fifty day moving average is $26.43 and its 200-day moving average is $26.12. The stock has a market cap of $3.68 billion, a PE ratio of -23.07 and a beta of 0.45.

About Perrigo

Perrigo Company plc provides over-the-counter health and wellness solutions to enhance individual well-being in the United States, Europe, and internationally. It operates through Consumer Self-Care Americas and Consumer Self-Care International segments. The company develops, manufactures, markets, and distributes self-care consumer products, such as upper respiratory products, including cough suppressants, expectorants, and sinus and allergy relief; nutrition products consisting of infant formulas and nutritional beverages; digestive health products, including antacids, anti-diarrheal, and anti-heartburn; pain and sleep-aids products comprising pain relievers and fever reducers; and oral care products, which include toothbrushes, toothbrush replacement heads, floss, flossers, whitening products, and toothbrush covers.