Parker-Hannifin Co. (NYSE:PH) Shares Sold by Covington Investment Advisors Inc.

Covington Investment Advisors Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Parker-Hannifin Co. (NYSE:PH) by 3.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,991 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 65 shares during the quarter. Covington Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Parker-Hannifin were worth $1,266,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Parker-Hannifin by 39.2% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 645,516 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $415,409,000 after buying an additional 181,859 shares during the period. Howard Capital Management Group LLC purchased a new position in Parker-Hannifin during the fourth quarter worth about $23,390,000. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its position in Parker-Hannifin by 752.5% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 24,381 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $15,507,000 after purchasing an additional 21,521 shares during the period. Columbus Macro LLC boosted its holdings in Parker-Hannifin by 485.2% in the 4th quarter. Columbus Macro LLC now owns 10,751 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $6,838,000 after purchasing an additional 8,914 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Congress Asset Management Co. increased its position in Parker-Hannifin by 15.5% during the 4th quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 190,701 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $121,292,000 after purchasing an additional 25,605 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.44% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PH has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays reduced their target price on Parker-Hannifin from $791.00 to $750.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 10th. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Parker-Hannifin in a research note on Friday, February 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $795.00 price objective on the stock. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Parker-Hannifin from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $786.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, December 12th. KeyCorp upped their price target on shares of Parker-Hannifin from $775.00 to $790.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their target price on Parker-Hannifin from $777.00 to $824.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $736.65.

Parker-Hannifin Stock Performance

Shares of Parker-Hannifin stock opened at $626.76 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 1.06. Parker-Hannifin Co. has a 1 year low of $492.71 and a 1 year high of $718.44. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $659.79 and its 200-day simple moving average is $653.92. The firm has a market cap of $80.68 billion, a PE ratio of 25.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.50.

Parker-Hannifin (NYSE:PH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $6.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.23 by $0.30. Parker-Hannifin had a return on equity of 27.34% and a net margin of 15.87%. Equities analysts forecast that Parker-Hannifin Co. will post 26.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Parker-Hannifin Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were paid a dividend of $1.63 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.04%. Parker-Hannifin’s payout ratio is currently 26.99%.

Parker-Hannifin Profile

Parker-Hannifin Corporation manufactures and sells motion and control technologies and systems for various mobile, industrial, and aerospace markets worldwide. The company operates through two segments: Diversified Industrial and Aerospace Systems. The Diversified Industrial segment offers sealing, shielding, thermal products and systems, adhesives, coatings, and noise vibration and harshness solutions; filters, systems, and diagnostics solutions to ensure purity and remove contaminants from fuel, air, oil, water, and other liquids and gases; connectors used in fluid and gas handling; and hydraulic, pneumatic, and electromechanical components and systems for builders and users of mobile and industrial machinery and equipment.