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

StockNews.com cut shares of Perrigo (NYSE:PRGO) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $30.00 price objective (down previously from $50.00) on shares of Perrigo in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $42.00 price target on shares of Perrigo in a report on Monday, September 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Perrigo presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $37.00.

Perrigo Stock Performance

PRGO opened at $25.64 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $26.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $26.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 2.56 and a quick ratio of 1.77. The firm has a market cap of $3.50 billion, a P/E ratio of -21.91 and a beta of 0.52. Perrigo has a 1-year low of $23.89 and a 1-year high of $34.60.

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

Perrigo Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at Perrigo

In other Perrigo news, Director Jeffrey B. Kindler sold 17,598 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 directly owns 5,409 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $152,912.43. The trade was a 76.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Perrigo

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Venturi Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Perrigo in the 3rd quarter valued at $56,000. KBC Group NV grew its holdings in shares of Perrigo by 25.1% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,517 shares of the company’s stock worth $118,000 after purchasing an additional 905 shares during the last quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Perrigo by 9.7% during the 3rd quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 5,100 shares of the company’s stock valued at $134,000 after buying an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. Atria Investments Inc purchased a new stake in Perrigo in the 3rd quarter valued at about $208,000. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in Perrigo in the 2nd quarter worth about $213,000. 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.