Principal Financial Group Inc. Boosts Stock Holdings in Herc Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HRI)

Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Herc Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HRI) by 71.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 52,290 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 21,808 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.18% of Herc worth $7,021,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC purchased a new position in shares of Herc during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $11,259,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its holdings in Herc by 8.0% in the 1st quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 6,758 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $907,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in Herc by 1,221.2% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 40,732 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $7,712,000 after acquiring an additional 37,649 shares in the last quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC increased its holdings in Herc by 12.8% in the 4th quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 2,784 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $527,000 after acquiring an additional 315 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S purchased a new stake in Herc in the 4th quarter worth $2,359,000. 93.11% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Herc Price Performance

Herc stock opened at $132.90 on Wednesday. Herc Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $96.19 and a 52-week high of $246.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.60, a PEG ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.86. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $128.21 and a 200-day simple moving average of $146.25. The company has a quick ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.04.

Herc (NYSE:HRI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The transportation company reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.51 by ($1.21). The firm had revenue of $861.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $841.67 million. Herc had a net margin of 3.53% and a return on equity of 24.10%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.36 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Herc Holdings Inc. will post 12.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Herc Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 30th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.11%. Herc’s payout ratio is 62.36%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on HRI shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $146.00 price target (down previously from $171.00) on shares of Herc in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Herc from $225.00 to $140.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $140.00 target price (up previously from $130.00) on shares of Herc in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Herc from $250.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of Herc from $129.00 to $110.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $139.20.

Herc Profile

Herc Holdings Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an equipment rental supplier. It rents aerial, earthmoving, material handling, trucks and trailers, air compressors, compaction, and lighting equipment, as well as generators, and safety supplies and expendables; and provides ProSolutions, an industry specific solution based services, such as pumping solutions, power generation, climate control, remediation and restoration, and studio and production equipment.