Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 28,770 Shares of Grocery Outlet Holding Corp. (NASDAQ:GO)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Grocery Outlet Holding Corp. (NASDAQ:GO - Free Report) by 5.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 461,340 shares of the company's stock after selling 28,770 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.47% of Grocery Outlet worth $8,097,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Grocery Outlet by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,333,850 shares of the company's stock worth $268,628,000 after buying an additional 60,830 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Grocery Outlet by 22.1% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,613,617 shares of the company's stock worth $79,933,000 after purchasing an additional 655,065 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors boosted its position in shares of Grocery Outlet by 281.4% in the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 3,579,683 shares of the company's stock worth $103,023,000 after buying an additional 2,641,016 shares during the period. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. grew its holdings in Grocery Outlet by 21.1% in the 2nd quarter. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. now owns 3,498,533 shares of the company's stock worth $77,388,000 after buying an additional 609,871 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Grocery Outlet by 677.6% during the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,981,558 shares of the company's stock worth $43,832,000 after acquiring an additional 1,726,741 shares in the last quarter. 99.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Grocery Outlet Stock Performance

Shares of Grocery Outlet stock traded down $0.19 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $18.44. 1,611,518 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,850,333. Grocery Outlet Holding Corp. has a 1 year low of $13.60 and a 1 year high of $29.80. The company has a current ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The business has a 50-day moving average of $16.68 and a 200-day moving average of $19.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.53, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.13.

Grocery Outlet (NASDAQ:GO - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The company reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.27 by $0.01. Grocery Outlet had a return on equity of 5.25% and a net margin of 1.20%. The business had revenue of $1.11 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.10 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.25 EPS. Grocery Outlet's revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Grocery Outlet Holding Corp. will post 0.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Grocery Outlet from $26.00 to $23.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Roth Capital upgraded Grocery Outlet from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Loop Capital began coverage on Grocery Outlet in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a "hold" rating and a $17.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group cut their price target on Grocery Outlet from $21.00 to $16.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on shares of Grocery Outlet from $29.00 to $26.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $18.00.

Insider Activity

In other Grocery Outlet news, Director Erik D. Ragatz bought 110,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $18.25 per share, for a total transaction of $2,007,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 539,785 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,851,076.25. This represents a 25.59 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Eric J. Jr. Lindberg sold 200,095 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.29, for a total transaction of $3,259,547.55. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 70,938 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,155,580.02. This trade represents a 73.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 4.50% of the company's stock.

Grocery Outlet Profile

Grocery Outlet Holding Corp. operates as a retailer of consumables and fresh products sold through independently operated stores in the United States. Its stores offer products in various categories, such as dairy and deli, produce, floral, fresh meat, seafood products, grocery, general merchandise, health and beauty care, frozen food, beer and wine, and ethnic products.