Principal Financial Group Inc. Takes Position in PAR Technology Co. (NYSE:PAR)

Principal Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in PAR Technology Co. (NYSE:PAR) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 2,822 shares of the software maker’s stock, valued at approximately $205,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in PAR Technology by 7.5% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 298,067 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $15,523,000 after acquiring an additional 20,811 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in PAR Technology by 11.1% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 819,035 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $42,664,000 after acquiring an additional 81,551 shares in the last quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division raised its holdings in PAR Technology by 119.2% during the fourth quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division now owns 24,278 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $1,764,000 after acquiring an additional 13,200 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC increased its position in PAR Technology by 431.3% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 63,536 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $3,310,000 after buying an additional 51,578 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in PAR Technology by 6.2% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 15,968 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $903,000 after buying an additional 932 shares during the last quarter.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on PAR. Craig Hallum reissued a “buy” rating on shares of PAR Technology in a research report on Friday, February 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on PAR Technology from $71.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating on shares of PAR Technology in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $90.00 price target on shares of PAR Technology in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, StockNews.com raised PAR Technology to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $79.25.

PAR Technology Price Performance

PAR Technology stock opened at $64.18 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -256.69 and a beta of 2.20. PAR Technology Co. has a 12 month low of $37.74 and a 12 month high of $82.24. The company has a current ratio of 2.13, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $69.33 and its 200-day moving average is $65.95.

PAR Technology (NYSE:PAR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 28th. The software maker reported ($0.21) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.04) by ($0.17). The company had revenue of $105.01 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $99.10 million. PAR Technology had a negative return on equity of 8.99% and a negative net margin of 0.66%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 50.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.33) EPS. Equities research analysts expect that PAR Technology Co. will post -1.47 EPS for the current year.

About PAR Technology

PAR Technology Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides omnichannel cloud-based hardware and software solutions to the restaurant and retail industries worldwide. The Restaurant/Retail segment offers PUNCHH, an enterprise-grade customer loyalty and engagement solution; MENU, an eCommerce platform for restaurant brands; BRINK POS, an open cloud, point-of-sale solution; PAR PAYMENT SERVICES, a merchant services business that enables electronic payment and processing services for businesses; and DATA CENTRAL, a back-office solution that leverages business intelligence and automation technologies.