Principal Financial Group Inc. Cuts Position in Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEIS)

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEIS - Free Report) by 1.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 475,672 shares of the electronics maker's stock after selling 8,176 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 1.26% of Advanced Energy Industries worth $55,002,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH grew its position in shares of Advanced Energy Industries by 10.2% in the 4th quarter. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH now owns 139,556 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $16,137,000 after buying an additional 12,860 shares during the period. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. boosted its stake in Advanced Energy Industries by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 176,683 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $19,244,000 after purchasing an additional 6,217 shares in the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. bought a new stake in Advanced Energy Industries during the 3rd quarter valued at about $12,306,000. MQS Management LLC purchased a new position in Advanced Energy Industries in the third quarter worth about $664,000. Finally, Moody Aldrich Partners LLC raised its holdings in Advanced Energy Industries by 26.8% in the 4th quarter. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC now owns 51,726 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $5,981,000 after acquiring an additional 10,947 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.67% of the company's stock.

Advanced Energy Industries Stock Performance

Shares of AEIS stock traded down $0.76 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $125.78. 248,540 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 280,198. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.74 billion, a PE ratio of 87.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 3.27 and a current ratio of 4.42. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $118.53 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $111.73. Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. has a 12 month low of $89.11 and a 12 month high of $132.16.

Advanced Energy Industries (NASDAQ:AEIS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The electronics maker reported $1.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.09 by ($0.03). Advanced Energy Industries had a net margin of 3.66% and a return on equity of 8.90%. On average, research analysts forecast that Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. will post 3.66 EPS for the current year.

Advanced Energy Industries Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th will be paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.32%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 24th. Advanced Energy Industries's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Lanesha Minnix sold 1,600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.37, for a total value of $206,992.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,492 shares of the company's stock, valued at $451,760.04. This represents a 31.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 2.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AEIS has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup raised Advanced Energy Industries from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the company from $110.00 to $138.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Advanced Energy Industries from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Benchmark reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $125.00 price target on shares of Advanced Energy Industries in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on shares of Advanced Energy Industries from $138.00 to $136.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $145.00 target price on shares of Advanced Energy Industries in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $126.56.

Advanced Energy Industries Profile

Advanced Energy Industries, Inc provides precision power conversion, measurement, and control solutions in the United States and internationally. The company's plasma power products offer solutions to enable innovation for semiconductor and thin film plasma processes, such as dry etch and deposition.