Principal Financial Group Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Newmont Co. (NYSE:NEM)

Principal Financial Group Inc. reduced its stake in Newmont Co. (NYSE:NEM - Free Report) by 2.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,327,882 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 26,959 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.12% of Newmont worth $49,424,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in NEM. Avior Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Newmont by 191.8% during the 3rd quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 496 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 326 shares in the last quarter. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Newmont during the third quarter worth approximately $28,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Newmont during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Newmont by 66.0% during the 4th quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 880 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 350 shares during the period. Finally, McIlrath & Eck LLC grew its position in shares of Newmont by 80.6% during the 3rd quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 809 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 361 shares during the period. 68.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. CLSA began coverage on shares of Newmont in a report on Friday, November 29th. They issued an "underperform" rating for the company. Raymond James reduced their price objective on shares of Newmont from $62.00 to $59.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Newmont from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Bernstein Bank lifted their target price on Newmont from $55.00 to $58.00 in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Cibc World Mkts cut Newmont from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $53.37.

Insider Buying and Selling at Newmont

In other Newmont news, EVP Peter Toth sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total transaction of $120,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 82,596 shares in the company, valued at $3,303,840. This trade represents a 3.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Harry M. Iv Conger acquired 9,498 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $42.15 per share, for a total transaction of $400,340.70. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 14,498 shares in the company, valued at $611,090.70. This represents a 189.96 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 28,154 shares of company stock valued at $1,166,843 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Newmont Stock Performance

NYSE NEM traded down $2.84 during trading on Friday, hitting $45.25. 17,229,932 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,447,639. The stock has a market capitalization of $51.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -29.77, a PEG ratio of 0.40 and a beta of 0.52. Newmont Co. has a 12-month low of $29.42 and a 12-month high of $58.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.73 and a current ratio of 1.96. The business has a 50 day moving average of $41.46 and a 200-day moving average of $46.47.

Newmont (NYSE:NEM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The basic materials company reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.29. Newmont had a positive return on equity of 9.80% and a negative net margin of 7.03%. The business had revenue of $5.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.32 billion. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Newmont Co. will post 3.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Newmont Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 4th. Newmont's dividend payout ratio is presently -65.79%.

About Newmont

Newmont Corporation engages in the production and exploration of gold. It also explores for copper, silver, zinc, and lead. The company has operations and/or assets in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Dominican Republic, Peru, Suriname, Argentina, Chile, Australia, Papua New Guinea, Ecuador, Fiji, and Ghana.