Principal Financial Group Inc. Trims Stock Position in McGrath RentCorp (NASDAQ:MGRC)

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its stake in McGrath RentCorp (NASDAQ:MGRC) by 77.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,277 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 7,702 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in McGrath RentCorp were worth $240,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in McGrath RentCorp by 5.4% in the third quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,024 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $213,000 after buying an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in shares of McGrath RentCorp by 2.9% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 4,473 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $552,000 after acquiring an additional 126 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System raised its position in shares of McGrath RentCorp by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 6,871 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $732,000 after acquiring an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its stake in shares of McGrath RentCorp by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 10,397 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,108,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares during the period. Finally, Cim LLC boosted its position in shares of McGrath RentCorp by 4.6% during the second quarter. Cim LLC now owns 4,636 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $475,000 after purchasing an additional 205 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.05% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com upgraded McGrath RentCorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Oppenheimer upped their target price on shares of McGrath RentCorp from $124.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday.

McGrath RentCorp Trading Up 0.5 %

McGrath RentCorp stock opened at $121.49 on Tuesday. McGrath RentCorp has a 12 month low of $95.50 and a 12 month high of $130.86. The company has a market capitalization of $2.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.74. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $111.34 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $108.44.

McGrath RentCorp (NASDAQ:MGRC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.87 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.48. The company had revenue of $266.76 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $227.76 million. McGrath RentCorp had a net margin of 25.29% and a return on equity of 13.64%. McGrath RentCorp’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.65 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that McGrath RentCorp will post 5.5 EPS for the current year.

McGrath RentCorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 17th were issued a $0.475 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 17th. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.56%. McGrath RentCorp’s payout ratio is currently 20.77%.

Insider Activity at McGrath RentCorp

In other news, Director William J. Dawson sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.00, for a total transaction of $2,300,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $460,000. The trade was a 83.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP David M. Whitney sold 5,176 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.00, for a total transaction of $605,592.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 205 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,985. This trade represents a 96.19 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 47,016 shares of company stock valued at $5,493,411. 1.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About McGrath RentCorp

McGrath RentCorp operates as a business to business rental company in the United States and internationally. It rents and sells relocatable modular buildings, portable storage containers, and electronic test equipment. The company operates through four segments: Mobile Modular, Portable Storage, TRS-RenTelco, and Enviroplex.