Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 11,592 Shares of Vontier Co. (NYSE:VNT)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lowered its position in Vontier Co. (NYSE:VNT) by 3.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 344,511 shares of the company’s stock after selling 11,592 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.23% of Vontier worth $12,564,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC raised its position in shares of Vontier by 14.7% during the fourth quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC now owns 67,480 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,461,000 after purchasing an additional 8,657 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its holdings in Vontier by 2,814.5% during the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 281,836 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,164,000 after buying an additional 272,166 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Vontier during the fourth quarter worth $223,000. Holocene Advisors LP bought a new position in shares of Vontier in the third quarter valued at $1,349,000. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vontier during the third quarter valued at about $505,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.83% of the company’s stock.

Vontier Stock Performance

VNT stock opened at $37.02 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $37.67 and a 200-day moving average of $36.40. The firm has a market cap of $5.50 billion, a PE ratio of 13.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.26. Vontier Co. has a 12-month low of $31.22 and a 12-month high of $45.62. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.97.

Vontier (NYSE:VNT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $776.80 million during the quarter. Vontier had a return on equity of 43.22% and a net margin of 14.17%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Vontier Co. will post 3.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Vontier Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.025 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 6th. This represents a $0.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.27%. Vontier’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 3.64%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on VNT. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Vontier from $46.00 to $44.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. UBS Group began coverage on Vontier in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $47.00 price objective for the company. Barclays raised their target price on Vontier from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Wolfe Research upgraded Vontier from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $48.00 price target for the company in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Vontier from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vontier currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $45.43.

Vontier Profile

Vontier Corporation provides mobility ecosystem solutions worldwide. The company operates through Mobility Technologies, Repair Solutions, and Environmental and Fueling Solutions segments. The Mobility Technologies segment provides digitally equipment solutions for mobility ecosystem, such as point-of-sale and payment systems, workflow automation, telematics, data analytics, software platform, and integrated solutions for alternative fuel dispensing.