Principal Financial Group Inc. Reduces Holdings in News Co. (NASDAQ:NWS)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lowered its stake in shares of News Co. (NASDAQ:NWS) by 1.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 135,074 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,960 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in News were worth $4,110,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its holdings in News by 123.7% in the fourth quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 935 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 517 shares in the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of News by 22.9% in the 4th quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 2,668 shares of the company’s stock worth $82,000 after buying an additional 497 shares during the period. Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new position in shares of News in the 3rd quarter worth about $86,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in News by 72.1% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,478 shares of the company’s stock valued at $97,000 after acquiring an additional 1,457 shares during the period. Finally, Glenmede Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in News by 27.7% during the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 3,520 shares of the company’s stock worth $98,000 after acquiring an additional 763 shares in the last quarter. 14.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

News Stock Down 0.7 %

NWS stock opened at $32.04 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $31.83 and a 200 day moving average of $30.28. The firm has a market cap of $18.18 billion, a PE ratio of 43.89 and a beta of 1.38. News Co. has a twelve month low of $23.99 and a twelve month high of $35.25. The company has a quick ratio of 1.65, a current ratio of 1.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22.

News (NASDAQ:NWS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.33 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.34 by ($0.01). News had a net margin of 4.22% and a return on equity of 5.31%. On average, research analysts forecast that News Co. will post 1.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

News Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th will be issued a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 12th. This represents a yield of 0.6%. News’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.40%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of News to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st.

About News

News Corporation, a media and information services company, creates and distributes authoritative and engaging content, and other products and services for consumers and businesses worldwide. It operates through six segments: Digital Real Estate Services, Subscription Video Services, Dow Jones, Book Publishing, News Media, and Other.