Argus Downgrades Perrigo (NYSE:PRGO) to Hold

Perrigo (NYSE:PRGO) was downgraded by analysts at Argus from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Tuesday, Marketbeat.com reports.

Several other analysts have also commented on PRGO. StockNews.com lowered shares of Perrigo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 11th. Canaccord Genuity Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $42.00 target price on shares of Perrigo in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $30.00 price target (down previously from $50.00) on shares of Perrigo in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, Piper Sandler downgraded Perrigo from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $34.00 to $27.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $35.00.

Perrigo Stock Performance

NYSE PRGO opened at $23.53 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a current ratio of 2.56. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $26.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $26.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.21 billion, a P/E ratio of -20.11 and a beta of 0.53. Perrigo has a fifty-two week low of $23.14 and a fifty-two week high of $33.96.

Perrigo (NYSE:PRGO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.81. Perrigo had a negative net margin of 3.64% and a positive return on equity of 7.38%. The firm had revenue of $1.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.64 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Perrigo will post 2.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Jeffrey B. Kindler sold 17,598 shares of the firm’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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,409 shares in the company, valued at $152,912.43. This trade represents a 76.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Perrigo

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PRGO. Versant Capital Management Inc purchased a new stake in Perrigo during the 4th quarter worth approximately $45,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Perrigo by 93.7% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,920 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 929 shares in the last quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division increased its position in shares of Perrigo by 33.3% during the fourth quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 2,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Perrigo in the third quarter valued at $56,000. Finally, KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in Perrigo by 25.1% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,517 shares of the company’s stock valued at $118,000 after purchasing an additional 905 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.91% of the company’s stock.

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.