Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $8.69 Million Stock Holdings in Blackbaud, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLKB)

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Blackbaud, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLKB - Free Report) by 32.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 102,605 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 48,239 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.20% of Blackbaud worth $8,689,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in BLKB. Arizona State Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Blackbaud by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 11,977 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $912,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its stake in Blackbaud by 6.2% in the second quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 3,140 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $239,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares in the last quarter. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV increased its position in shares of Blackbaud by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV now owns 11,164 shares of the technology company's stock worth $850,000 after purchasing an additional 225 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Blackbaud by 6.4% during the 3rd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 4,879 shares of the technology company's stock worth $413,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quest Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Blackbaud by 2,950.0% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 427 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 413 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.21% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Baird R W downgraded shares of Blackbaud from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Evercore ISI raised shares of Blackbaud to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Raymond James reduced their price target on Blackbaud from $98.00 to $95.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 7th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Blackbaud from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, Robert W. Baird downgraded Blackbaud from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $92.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $86.67.

Blackbaud Stock Performance

Shares of BLKB traded up $1.05 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $83.39. The company had a trading volume of 107,124 shares, compared to its average volume of 231,659. The firm has a market cap of $4.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 81.84 and a beta of 1.03. The business has a fifty day moving average of $83.41 and a 200-day moving average of $79.95. Blackbaud, Inc. has a 12 month low of $66.47 and a 12 month high of $88.56. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79.

Blackbaud (NASDAQ:BLKB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The technology company reported $0.99 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.07 by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $286.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $293.74 million. Blackbaud had a net margin of 4.61% and a return on equity of 20.34%. Blackbaud's revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.65 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Blackbaud, Inc. will post 2.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Blackbaud announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Tuesday, July 30th that permits the company to buyback $800.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the technology company to purchase up to 18.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Kevin Mcdearis sold 3,210 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.16, for a total transaction of $273,363.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 63,802 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,433,378.32. This trade represents a 4.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Kevin P. Gregoire sold 6,619 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.68, for a total transaction of $567,115.92. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 99,096 shares in the company, valued at $8,490,545.28. The trade was a 6.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 41,186 shares of company stock valued at $3,459,942. 1.95% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Blackbaud Company Profile

Blackbaud, Inc provides cloud software solutions to nonprofits, foundations, education institutions, and healthcare organizations in the United States and internationally. The company offers fundraising and engagement solutions, such as Blackbaud Raiser's Edge NXT, Blackbaud CRM, Blackbaud eTapestry, Blackbaud Luminate Online, Blackbaud TeamRaiser, JustGiving, Blackbaud Fundraiser Performance Management, Blackbaud Guided Fundraising, and Blackbaud Altru; and financial management solutions comprising Blackbaud Financial Edge NXT, Blackbaud Tuition Management, and Blackbaud Financial Aid and Billing Management.