Banyan Capital Management Inc. Reduces Stock Position in Parker-Hannifin Co. (NYSE:PH)

Banyan Capital Management Inc. lessened its position in shares of Parker-Hannifin Co. (NYSE:PH - Free Report) by 6.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 22,102 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 1,566 shares during the quarter. Parker-Hannifin comprises 8.4% of Banyan Capital Management Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest holding. Banyan Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Parker-Hannifin were worth $14,058,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PH. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in Parker-Hannifin by 39.2% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 645,516 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $415,409,000 after acquiring an additional 181,859 shares during the last quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Parker-Hannifin in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $23,390,000. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Parker-Hannifin by 752.5% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 24,381 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $15,507,000 after purchasing an additional 21,521 shares during the period. Wilkinson Global Asset Management LLC grew its position in Parker-Hannifin by 59.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wilkinson Global Asset Management LLC now owns 39,093 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $24,700,000 after buying an additional 14,526 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Columbus Macro LLC increased its stake 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 buying an additional 8,914 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.44% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PH has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Parker-Hannifin from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 8th. KeyCorp raised their price objective on shares of Parker-Hannifin from $775.00 to $790.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Parker-Hannifin from $710.00 to $775.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup started coverage on Parker-Hannifin in a report on Friday, February 7th. They set a "buy" rating and a $795.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Parker-Hannifin from $777.00 to $824.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $739.06.

Parker-Hannifin Price Performance

PH stock traded down $28.75 during trading on Friday, hitting $666.71. The stock had a trading volume of 575,329 shares, compared to its average volume of 650,227. Parker-Hannifin Co. has a 1-year low of $492.71 and a 1-year high of $718.44. The company's 50 day moving average price is $665.65 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $643.57. The stock has a market cap of $85.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.45. 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 (NYSE:PH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $6.53 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Parker-Hannifin Co. will post 26.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Parker-Hannifin Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a dividend of $1.63 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.98%. Parker-Hannifin's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.99%.

Parker-Hannifin Company 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.