The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Reduces Stock Position in Hillenbrand, Inc. (NYSE:HI)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company trimmed its position in Hillenbrand, Inc. (NYSE:HI) by 1.2% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 37,175 shares of the company’s stock after selling 464 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned about 0.05% of Hillenbrand worth $1,033,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Matrix Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Hillenbrand in the third quarter worth $25,000. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new position in Hillenbrand in the third quarter valued at about $48,000. KBC Group NV boosted its position in shares of Hillenbrand by 32.2% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,263 shares of the company’s stock worth $63,000 after buying an additional 551 shares during the period. nVerses Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hillenbrand in the third quarter valued at about $75,000. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hillenbrand during the 2nd quarter valued at about $90,000. 89.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hillenbrand Stock Down 1.1 %

Hillenbrand stock opened at $33.00 on Friday. Hillenbrand, Inc. has a twelve month low of $25.11 and a twelve month high of $50.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 1.27. The firm has a market cap of $2.32 billion, a PE ratio of -11.04 and a beta of 1.43. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $30.42 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $34.69.

Hillenbrand (NYSE:HI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 13th. The company reported $1.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.08. Hillenbrand had a negative net margin of 6.63% and a positive return on equity of 14.86%. The firm had revenue of $837.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $793.38 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.13 earnings per share. Hillenbrand’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Hillenbrand, Inc. will post 3.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hillenbrand Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be paid a $0.225 dividend. This is a boost from Hillenbrand’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. This represents a $0.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.73%. Hillenbrand’s dividend payout ratio is currently -30.10%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HI has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com raised Hillenbrand from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $33.00 target price on shares of Hillenbrand in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Finally, KeyCorp decreased their price target on shares of Hillenbrand from $45.00 to $40.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $44.67.

Hillenbrand Company Profile

Hillenbrand, Inc operates as an industrial company in the United States and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Advanced Process Solutions and Molding Technology Solutions. The Advanced Process Solutions segment designs, engineers, manufactures, markets, and services process and material handling equipment and systems comprising compounding, extrusion, and material handling equipment, equipment system design services, as well as offers mixing technology, ingredient automation, and portion process; and provides screening and separating equipment for various industries, including plastics, food and pharmaceuticals, chemicals, fertilizers, minerals, energy, wastewater treatment, forest products, and other general industrials.