Perrigo (NYSE:PRGO) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Perrigo has been downgraded from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating by Wall Street Zen, indicating a potential slowdown in investor confidence.
• Following recent earnings, Perrigo reported a quarterly earnings miss, with earnings per share of $0.57 against estimates of $0.59 and a revenue decline of 0.9% year-over-year.
• Institutional investors have shown significant interest, with Geneos Wealth Management increasing its holdings in Perrigo by 439.1% during the first quarter.

Perrigo (NYSE:PRGO - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a note issued to investors on Sunday.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their price objective on shares of Perrigo from $42.00 to $40.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Perrigo from $38.00 to $35.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $33.00.

Perrigo Stock Performance

NYSE PRGO opened at $24.4940 on Friday. Perrigo has a 52-week low of $21.03 and a 52-week high of $30.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 2.32 and a quick ratio of 1.24. The company's fifty day moving average is $26.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $26.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -42.23 and a beta of 0.47.

Perrigo (NYSE:PRGO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.57 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.59 by ($0.02). Perrigo had a positive return on equity of 9.09% and a negative net margin of 1.86%.The business had revenue of $1.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.08 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.53 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down .9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Perrigo will post 2.56 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Perrigo

In other news, CFO Eduardo Guarita Bezerra acquired 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 18th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $22.74 per share, with a total value of $68,220.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer owned 48,949 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,113,100.26. This trade represents a 6.53% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Robert Willis acquired 1,488 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 22nd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $24.10 per share, with a total value of $35,860.80. Following the completion of the acquisition, the executive vice president directly owned 41,939 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,010,729.90. The trade was a 3.68% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders acquired 8,863 shares of company stock valued at $204,575 over the last ninety days. 0.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Perrigo

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in Perrigo by 439.1% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 965 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 786 shares during the last quarter. Huntington National Bank raised its holdings in Perrigo by 237.8% during the 2nd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,054 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 742 shares during the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its holdings in Perrigo by 54.6% during the 2nd quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,201 shares of the company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 424 shares during the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in Perrigo by 101.0% during the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,234 shares of the company's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 620 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Picton Mahoney Asset Management bought a new stake in Perrigo during the 1st quarter worth about $42,000. 95.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.

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