Prescott Group Capital Management L.L.C. Purchases New Position in Pentair plc $PNR

Prescott Group Capital Management L.L.C. acquired a new stake in shares of Pentair plc (NYSE:PNR) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 16,743 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $887,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of PNR. Inspire Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Pentair by 7.1% in the 1st quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 2,825 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $246,000 after acquiring an additional 188 shares during the period. CI Investments Inc. lifted its position in Pentair by 8.5% in the 1st quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 2,657 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $231,000 after purchasing an additional 209 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in Pentair by 8.4% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 3,502 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $305,000 after purchasing an additional 271 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC boosted its stake in Pentair by 6.2% during the 1st quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 5,526 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $481,000 after purchasing an additional 321 shares during the period. Finally, Westpac Banking Corp boosted its stake in Pentair by 30.1% during the 1st quarter. Westpac Banking Corp now owns 1,524 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $133,000 after purchasing an additional 353 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.37% of the company’s stock.

Pentair Stock Performance

Shares of PNR opened at $69.65 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.12 billion, a PE ratio of 18.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $57.01 and a 200 day moving average price of $76.11. Pentair plc has a 52-week low of $51.13 and a 52-week high of $109.89.

Pentair (NYSE:PNR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The industrial products company reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $976.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $963.71 million. Pentair had a net margin of 15.44% and a return on equity of 20.10%. Pentair’s revenue was down 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.24 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Pentair plc will post 4.70 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pentair Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 6th. Investors of record on Friday, October 23rd will be issued a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 23rd. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. Pentair’s payout ratio is presently 28.65%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Oppenheimer dropped their price target on shares of Pentair from $94.00 to $84.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 21st. Zacks Research upgraded Pentair from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Pentair to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on Pentair from $61.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 28th. Finally, UBS Group set a $65.00 target price on Pentair in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $76.59.

About Pentair

Pentair plc (NYSE: PNR) is a water treatment and management company that designs and manufactures products and systems for residential, commercial, industrial, and recreational applications. Its offerings include water filtration, softening, and purification systems; pumps, valves, controls, and related equipment; and solutions that help customers manage water quality, flow, and conservation.

The company also serves the swimming pool and spa market through equipment such as pumps, filters, heaters, lighting, automation systems, and water-treatment products.