Principal Financial Group Inc. Lowers Stock Position in Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc (NASDAQ:JAZZ)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lessened its holdings in Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc (NASDAQ:JAZZ) by 31.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 142,938 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 66,821 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Jazz Pharmaceuticals were worth $15,925,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in JAZZ. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Jazz Pharmaceuticals by 40.9% during the 3rd quarter. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC now owns 15,500 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,727,000 after acquiring an additional 4,500 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in Jazz Pharmaceuticals by 11.4% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 60,211 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $6,691,000 after acquiring an additional 6,157 shares during the last quarter. Stephens Inc. AR raised its holdings in Jazz Pharmaceuticals by 16.1% in the 3rd quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 5,563 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $620,000 after acquiring an additional 771 shares during the last quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Jazz Pharmaceuticals by 60.4% in the 3rd quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 11,877 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,323,000 after acquiring an additional 4,472 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its holdings in Jazz Pharmaceuticals by 387.6% in the 3rd quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 33,173 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $3,695,000 after acquiring an additional 26,370 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.14% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Jazz Pharmaceuticals

In related news, SVP Mary Elizabeth Henderson sold 1,410 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.30, for a total transaction of $152,703.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 14,531 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,573,707.30. This trade represents a 8.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Bruce C. Cozadd sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.84, for a total transaction of $110,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 428,976 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $47,547,699.84. This represents a 0.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 6,110 shares of company stock worth $720,160. 4.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Jazz Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

JAZZ opened at $121.65 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $7.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.57. Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc has a fifty-two week low of $99.06 and a fifty-two week high of $134.17. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $112.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $110.35. The company has a quick ratio of 3.74, a current ratio of 4.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on JAZZ. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Jazz Pharmaceuticals from $160.00 to $154.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Jazz Pharmaceuticals from $140.00 to $120.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 1st. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on Jazz Pharmaceuticals from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Jazz Pharmaceuticals from $190.00 to $202.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 19th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $140.00 price target on shares of Jazz Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, September 9th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $175.00.

About Jazz Pharmaceuticals

Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc identifies, develops, and commercializes pharmaceutical products for unmet medical needs in the United States, Europe, and internationally. The company offers Xywav for cataplexy or excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) with narcolepsy and idiopathic hypersomnia; Xyrem to treat cataplexy or EDS with narcolepsy; Epidiolex for seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut and Dravet syndromes, or tuberous sclerosis complex; Zepzelca to treat metastatic small cell lung cancer, or with disease progression on or after platinum-based chemotherapy; Rylaze for acute lymphoblastic leukemia or lymphoblastic lymphoma; Enrylaze to treat acute lymphoblastic leukemia and lymphoblastic lymphoma; Defitelio to treat severe hepatic veno-occlusive disease; and Vyxeos for newly-diagnosed therapy-related acute myeloid leukemia.