Principal Financial Group Inc. Increases Holdings in Edgewell Personal Care Co (NYSE:EPC)

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Edgewell Personal Care Co (NYSE:EPC) by 2.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 257,630 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 6,208 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.53% of Edgewell Personal Care worth $8,656,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. US Bancorp DE raised its position in Edgewell Personal Care by 28.8% in the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 25,323 shares of the company’s stock worth $920,000 after acquiring an additional 5,667 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. bought a new stake in shares of Edgewell Personal Care in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $559,000. Chartwell Investment Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Edgewell Personal Care by 54.3% in the 3rd quarter. Chartwell Investment Partners LLC now owns 211,056 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,670,000 after purchasing an additional 74,315 shares during the period. Aigen Investment Management LP purchased a new position in Edgewell Personal Care in the third quarter valued at approximately $213,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Edgewell Personal Care by 1.4% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 420,886 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,295,000 after purchasing an additional 5,893 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 91.91% of the company’s stock.

Edgewell Personal Care Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:EPC opened at $31.52 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $32.25 and a 200 day moving average of $34.95. The company has a current ratio of 2.06, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The stock has a market cap of $1.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.22 and a beta of 0.88. Edgewell Personal Care Co has a 12 month low of $26.65 and a 12 month high of $41.50.

Edgewell Personal Care (NYSE:EPC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The company reported $0.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.13 by ($0.06). Edgewell Personal Care had a return on equity of 9.29% and a net margin of 4.09%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Edgewell Personal Care Co will post 3.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Edgewell Personal Care Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.90%. Edgewell Personal Care’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.79%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Edgewell Personal Care from $37.00 to $35.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Edgewell Personal Care from $40.00 to $36.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Edgewell Personal Care from $33.00 to $30.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Edgewell Personal Care from $35.00 to $32.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group cut their price objective on shares of Edgewell Personal Care from $53.00 to $40.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $36.57.

About Edgewell Personal Care

Edgewell Personal Care Company is a manufacturer and marketer of personal care products in the wet shave, sun and skin care, feminine care and infant care categories. As of September 30, 2016, the Company had a portfolio of over 25 brands. It manages its business in four segments: Wet Shave, Sun and Skin Care, Feminine Care and All Other.