Principal Financial Group Inc. Increases Stock Holdings in Suncor Energy Inc. (NYSE:SU)

Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Suncor Energy Inc. (NYSE:SU - Free Report) TSE: SU by 39.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,706,616 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after buying an additional 2,767,043 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.78% of Suncor Energy worth $346,298,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of SU. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in Suncor Energy by 1,324.8% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 3,469,008 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $123,774,000 after acquiring an additional 3,225,543 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. grew its stake in Suncor Energy by 23.3% in the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 9,695,560 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $357,827,000 after acquiring an additional 1,829,936 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Suncor Energy by 136.2% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 1,891,781 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $69,845,000 after acquiring an additional 1,090,988 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new stake in Suncor Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at $23,286,000. Finally, Bridgewater Associates LP grew its stake in Suncor Energy by 113.4% in the 3rd quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 983,633 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $36,347,000 after acquiring an additional 522,635 shares during the period. 67.37% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SU has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. raised shares of Suncor Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Desjardins raised shares of Suncor Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Morgan Stanley cut shares of Suncor Energy from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Tudor Pickering raised shares of Suncor Energy from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Suncor Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $58.00.

Suncor Energy Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of Suncor Energy stock traded up $0.30 on Thursday, reaching $40.19. 3,052,591 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,560,857. Suncor Energy Inc. has a 1-year low of $32.64 and a 1-year high of $41.94. The company has a market cap of $50.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.33 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $37.83 and its 200-day moving average price is $38.63.

Suncor Energy (NYSE:SU - Get Free Report) TSE: SU last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.07. Suncor Energy had a return on equity of 15.37% and a net margin of 11.80%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Suncor Energy Inc. will post 3.42 EPS for the current year.

Suncor Energy Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be issued a $0.399 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 4th. Suncor Energy's payout ratio is currently 46.67%.

Suncor Energy Company Profile

Suncor Energy Inc operates as an integrated energy company in Canada, the United States, and internationally. It operates through Oil Sands; Exploration and Production; and Refining and Marketing segments. The Oil Sands segment explores, develops, and produces bitumen, synthetic crude oil, and related products.