QRG Capital Management Inc. Boosts Position in Haleon plc (NYSE:HLN)

QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Haleon plc (NYSE:HLN - Free Report) by 61.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 326,356 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 124,422 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Haleon were worth $3,113,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in shares of Haleon during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in Haleon by 2,029.1% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 3,513 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 3,348 shares during the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank lifted its stake in Haleon by 3,470.0% during the 3rd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 3,570 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 3,470 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Haleon during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Spire Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of Haleon in the 4th quarter worth $39,000. 6.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered shares of Haleon from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. HSBC restated a "hold" rating on shares of Haleon in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered Haleon from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $10.95.

Haleon Stock Performance

Haleon stock traded down $0.13 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $10.55. The stock had a trading volume of 5,710,669 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,477,627. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The stock's 50 day moving average is $9.63 and its two-hundred day moving average is $9.85. Haleon plc has a 1 year low of $7.89 and a 1 year high of $10.80. The stock has a market cap of $47.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.28.

Haleon (NYSE:HLN - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $0.05 earnings per share for the quarter. Haleon had a net margin of 10.85% and a return on equity of 14.76%. The firm had revenue of $3.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.38 billion. As a group, analysts predict that Haleon plc will post 0.43 EPS for the current year.

Haleon Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a -- dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Investors of record on Friday, April 25th will be paid a $0.1166 dividend. This represents a yield of 1.6%. This is a positive change from Haleon's previous -- dividend of $0.05. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 25th. Haleon's payout ratio is currently 58.97%.

About Haleon

Haleon plc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the research, development, manufacture, and sale of various consumer healthcare products in North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Latin America, and the Asia Pacific. The company provides oral health products, such as toothpastes, mouth washes, and denture care products under the Sensodyne, Polident, Parodontax, Biotene brands; and vitamins, minerals, and supplements under Centrum, Emergen-C, Caltrate brands.