Graham Holdings (NYSE:GHC) Shares Acquired by Principal Securities Inc.

Principal Securities Inc. boosted its position in Graham Holdings (NYSE:GHC) by 30.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 182 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 42 shares during the quarter. Principal Securities Inc.’s holdings in Graham were worth $159,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Graham by 558.3% in the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 79 shares of the company’s stock worth $65,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV increased its position in shares of Graham by 60.0% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 104 shares of the company’s stock worth $85,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in Graham by 8.4% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 155 shares of the company’s stock valued at $128,000 after buying an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Graham during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $189,000. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Graham during the 3rd quarter valued at about $203,000. 93.16% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Graham Price Performance

NYSE GHC opened at $910.13 on Tuesday. Graham Holdings has a twelve month low of $683.00 and a twelve month high of $974.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.94 billion, a PE ratio of 17.82 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.57. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $906.79 and a 200 day simple moving average of $859.42.

Graham Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd were given a $1.80 dividend. This represents a $7.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 3rd. This is a boost from Graham’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.72. Graham’s payout ratio is 14.10%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Marcel A. Snyman sold 159 shares of Graham stock in a transaction on Monday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $881.30, for a total transaction of $140,126.70. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 442 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $389,534.60. The trade was a 26.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 20.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Graham from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th.

Graham Profile

Graham Holdings Company, through its subsidiaries, operates as a diversified education and media company in the United States and internationally. It provides test preparation services and materials; professional training and exam preparation for professional certifications and licensures; and non-academic operations support services to the Purdue University Global; operations support services for online courses and programs; training and test preparation services for accounting and financial services professionals; English-language training, academic preparation programs, and test preparation for English proficiency exams; and A-level examination preparation services, as well as operates colleges, business school, higher education institution, and an online learning institution.