Perrigo (NYSE:PRGO) Shares Gap Up on Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Perrigo Company plc (NYSE:PRGO) shares gapped up prior to trading on Friday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $24.13, but opened at $27.65. Perrigo shares last traded at $28.44, with a volume of 921,628 shares traded.

The company reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.92 by $0.01. Perrigo had a negative net margin of 3.64% and a positive return on equity of 7.38%. The company had revenue of $1.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.20 billion.

Perrigo Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This is a boost from Perrigo’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. Perrigo’s payout ratio is -99.15%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on PRGO. Piper Sandler cut Perrigo from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $34.00 to $27.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Perrigo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Argus cut shares of Perrigo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $35.00.

Insider Transactions at Perrigo

In related news, Director Jeffrey B. Kindler sold 17,598 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.27, for a total transaction of $497,495.46. Following the sale, the director now owns 5,409 shares in the company, valued at approximately $152,912.43. This represents a 76.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Perrigo

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PRGO. Headlands Technologies LLC increased its holdings in Perrigo by 1,942.0% during the fourth quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 1,409 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 1,340 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc acquired a new position in shares of Perrigo during the 4th quarter worth about $45,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Perrigo by 93.7% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,920 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 929 shares during the period. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division lifted its stake in Perrigo by 33.3% in the 4th quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 2,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Perrigo during the third quarter worth about $56,000. Institutional investors own 95.91% of the company’s stock.

Perrigo Stock Up 17.4 %

The stock has a market cap of $3.87 billion, a P/E ratio of -24.20 and a beta of 0.54. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $24.87 and a 200-day simple moving average of $26.18. The company has a quick ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 2.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94.

About Perrigo

Perrigo Company plc provides over-the-counter health and wellness solutions to enhance individual well-being in the United States, Europe, and internationally. It operates through Consumer Self-Care Americas and Consumer Self-Care International segments. The company develops, manufactures, markets, and distributes self-care consumer products, such as upper respiratory products, including cough suppressants, expectorants, and sinus and allergy relief; nutrition products consisting of infant formulas and nutritional beverages; digestive health products, including antacids, anti-diarrheal, and anti-heartburn; pain and sleep-aids products comprising pain relievers and fever reducers; and oral care products, which include toothbrushes, toothbrush replacement heads, floss, flossers, whitening products, and toothbrush covers.