Gotham Asset Management LLC Boosts Stock Position in Pitney Bowes Inc. (NYSE:PBI)

Gotham Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Pitney Bowes Inc. (NYSE:PBI) by 261.9% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 90,300 shares of the technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 65,347 shares during the quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Pitney Bowes were worth $654,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Pitney Bowes during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings 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 valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 2,873 shares in the last quarter. Xponance Inc. boosted its position in Pitney Bowes by 36.7% in the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 14,283 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $103,000 after buying an additional 3,837 shares during the period. Cibc World Markets Corp purchased a new stake in Pitney Bowes in the 4th quarter valued at about $110,000. Finally, Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC bought a new position in Pitney Bowes in the 4th quarter worth about $130,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.88% of the company’s stock.

Pitney Bowes Price Performance

NYSE:PBI opened at $9.46 on Monday. Pitney Bowes Inc. has a 1-year low of $4.62 and a 1-year high of $11.01. The company has a 50-day moving average of $8.81 and a 200 day moving average of $8.49. The firm has a market cap of $1.73 billion, a PE ratio of -8.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 1.47.

Pitney Bowes (NYSE:PBI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The technology company reported $0.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.28 by $0.05. Pitney Bowes had a negative net margin of 7.71% and a negative return on equity of 20.95%. The firm had revenue of $493.42 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $498.99 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($0.01) EPS. The company’s revenue was down 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Pitney Bowes Inc. will post 1.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pitney Bowes Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be given a dividend of $0.07 per share. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 19th. This is a boost from Pitney Bowes’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. Pitney Bowes’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -30.77%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on PBI shares. Sidoti raised shares of Pitney Bowes to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. StockNews.com lowered Pitney Bowes from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP James Arthur Fairweather sold 130,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.83, for a total transaction of $1,407,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 176,145 shares in the company, valued at $1,907,650.35. The trade was a 42.46% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Kurt James Wolf sold 481,199 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.77, for a total transaction of $5,182,513.23. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 584,636 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,296,529.72. This trade represents a 45.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 613,244 shares of company stock worth $6,607,591. 9.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.