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

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Perrigo (NYSE:PRGO) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Sunday.

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

Perrigo Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE PRGO opened at $23.77 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 2.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. Perrigo has a 52 week low of $21.03 and a 52 week high of $30.93. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $25.98 and its 200 day moving average is $26.21. The company has a market cap of $3.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -40.97 and a beta of 0.47.

Perrigo (NYSE:PRGO) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 firm had revenue of $1.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.08 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.53 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Perrigo will post 2.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Perrigo Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 29th. Perrigo’s payout ratio is -200.00%.

Insider Activity

In other Perrigo news, EVP Robert Willis bought 1,488 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 22nd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $24.10 per share, for a total transaction of $35,860.80. Following the acquisition, the executive vice president owned 41,939 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,010,729.90. This represents a 3.68% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Eduardo Guarita Bezerra purchased 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 18th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $22.74 per share, for a total transaction of $68,220.00. Following the purchase, the chief financial officer owned 48,949 shares in the company, valued at $1,113,100.26. This represents a 6.53% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have acquired 8,863 shares of company stock worth $204,575. Corporate insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Perrigo

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in Perrigo by 439.1% in 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 in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank increased its position in shares of Perrigo by 237.8% during the 2nd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,054 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 742 shares during the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its position in shares of Perrigo by 54.6% during the 2nd quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,201 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 424 shares during the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its position in shares of Perrigo by 101.0% during the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,234 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 620 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Picton Mahoney Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Perrigo during the 1st quarter valued at about $42,000. Institutional investors 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.