Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 6,139 Shares of Booz Allen Hamilton Holding Co. (NYSE:BAH)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lessened its position in Booz Allen Hamilton Holding Co. (NYSE:BAH) by 17.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 29,784 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 6,139 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Booz Allen Hamilton were worth $3,833,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its holdings in Booz Allen Hamilton by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 1,822 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $297,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC grew its holdings in Booz Allen Hamilton by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC now owns 1,660 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $214,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Booz Allen Hamilton by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 1,816 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $234,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Booz Allen Hamilton by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 4,160 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $535,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Apollon Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Booz Allen Hamilton by 5.5% during the 3rd quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,663 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $271,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.82% of the company’s stock.

Booz Allen Hamilton Trading Up 2.8 %

Shares of BAH stock opened at $105.59 on Wednesday. Booz Allen Hamilton Holding Co. has a 1 year low of $101.82 and a 1 year high of $190.59. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $126.74 and a 200-day moving average price of $146.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.72, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The company has a market cap of $13.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.74, a PEG ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 0.55.

Booz Allen Hamilton (NYSE:BAH) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The business services provider reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by $0.07. Booz Allen Hamilton had a net margin of 7.39% and a return on equity of 68.97%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Booz Allen Hamilton Holding Co. will post 6.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Booz Allen Hamilton Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This is an increase from Booz Allen Hamilton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.08%. Booz Allen Hamilton’s payout ratio is 32.79%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on BAH shares. TD Cowen cut their target price on shares of Booz Allen Hamilton from $200.00 to $155.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Booz Allen Hamilton in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They set a “neutral” rating and a $159.00 target price on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on shares of Booz Allen Hamilton from $210.00 to $158.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised shares of Booz Allen Hamilton to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Booz Allen Hamilton from $180.00 to $164.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $158.27.

About Booz Allen Hamilton

Booz Allen Hamilton Holding Corporation provides management and technology consulting, analytics, engineering, digital solutions, mission operations, and cyber services to governments, corporations, and not-for-profit organizations in the United States and internationally. It focuses on artificial intelligence services comprising of machine learning, predictive modeling, automation and decision analytics, and quantum computing.