Principal Financial Group Inc. Purchases 150,656 Shares of AGCO Co. (NYSE:AGCO)

Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of AGCO Co. (NYSE:AGCO - Free Report) by 28.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 684,249 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 150,656 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.92% of AGCO worth $66,959,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in AGCO in the 1st quarter worth $30,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in shares of AGCO by 102.4% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 344 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 174 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of AGCO by 69.0% in the 2nd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 409 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of AGCO by 50.2% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 416 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its holdings in AGCO by 2,238.9% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 421 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 403 shares during the period. 78.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AGCO Stock Down 2.4 %

AGCO stock traded down $2.26 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $91.86. 1,041,947 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 826,163. AGCO Co. has a one year low of $84.35 and a one year high of $130.26. The company has a market cap of $6.86 billion, a PE ratio of 40.65, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.25. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $95.69 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $99.04. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87.

AGCO (NYSE:AGCO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.08 by ($0.40). AGCO had a return on equity of 15.79% and a net margin of 1.35%. The firm had revenue of $2.60 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.90 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.97 EPS. AGCO's revenue for the quarter was down 24.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that AGCO Co. will post 7.48 EPS for the current year.

AGCO Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.26%. AGCO's payout ratio is 51.33%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on AGCO shares. StockNews.com downgraded AGCO from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of AGCO from $88.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of AGCO from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of AGCO in a research note on Friday, August 9th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $96.00 price objective for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of AGCO from $130.00 to $115.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, AGCO has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $114.40.

AGCO Profile

AGCO Corporation manufactures and distributes agricultural equipment and related replacement parts worldwide. It offers horsepower tractors for row crop production, soil cultivation, planting, land leveling, seeding, and commercial hay operations; utility tractors for small- and medium-sized farms, as well as for dairy, livestock, orchards, and vineyards; and compact tractors for small farms, specialty agricultural industries, landscaping, equestrian, and residential uses.