Perrigo (NYSE:PRGO) Downgraded by StockNews.com to Hold

StockNews.com lowered shares of Perrigo (NYSE:PRGO) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report released on Wednesday.

PRGO has been the subject of several other reports. Canaccord Genuity Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $42.00 price target on shares of Perrigo in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and set a $30.00 target price (down previously from $50.00) on shares of Perrigo in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Perrigo presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $37.00.

Perrigo Trading Down 0.1 %

NYSE:PRGO opened at $25.64 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a current ratio of 2.56. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $26.77 and a 200-day simple moving average of $26.89. Perrigo has a one year low of $23.89 and a one year high of $34.60. The firm has a market cap of $3.50 billion, a P/E ratio of -21.91 and a beta of 0.52.

Perrigo (NYSE:PRGO) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.81. The company had revenue of $1.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.12 billion. Perrigo had a positive return on equity of 7.38% and a negative net margin of 3.64%. Perrigo’s revenue was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.64 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Perrigo will post 2.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Perrigo Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th were paid a $0.276 dividend. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.31%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. Perrigo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -94.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Perrigo

In other Perrigo news, Director Jeffrey B. Kindler sold 17,598 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.27, for a total transaction of $497,495.46. Following the sale, the director now owns 5,409 shares in the company, valued at approximately $152,912.43. The trade was a 76.49 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Perrigo

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Venturi Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Perrigo in the third quarter valued at $56,000. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in shares of Perrigo by 25.1% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,517 shares of the company’s stock valued at $118,000 after buying an additional 905 shares during the period. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Perrigo by 9.7% in the third quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 5,100 shares of the company’s stock worth $134,000 after buying an additional 450 shares during the last quarter. Atria Investments Inc acquired a new stake in Perrigo during the third quarter worth about $208,000. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Perrigo in the second quarter valued at approximately $213,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.91% of the company’s stock.

Perrigo Company Profile

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.