Renaissance Technologies LLC Raises Stock Position in Tennant (NYSE:TNC)

Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its position in shares of Tennant (NYSE:TNC - Free Report) by 91.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 93,400 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 44,600 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned approximately 0.49% of Tennant worth $7,615,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in TNC. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Tennant by 77.3% in the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 30,527 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,932,000 after acquiring an additional 13,311 shares during the last quarter. Amundi raised its holdings in Tennant by 190.4% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 9,666 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $773,000 after buying an additional 6,338 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Tennant by 1.4% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 436,933 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $41,971,000 after buying an additional 5,862 shares during the period. Barclays PLC raised its stake in shares of Tennant by 222.8% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 40,151 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,857,000 after acquiring an additional 27,712 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Tennant by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,394,271 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $195,205,000 after acquiring an additional 12,422 shares during the last quarter. 93.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Tennant Stock Down 2.5 %

Shares of TNC stock traded down $1.76 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $68.23. The stock had a trading volume of 103,321 shares, compared to its average volume of 140,028. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.58 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.97 and a quick ratio of 1.43. Tennant has a 12-month low of $67.63 and a 12-month high of $119.71. The firm's 50-day moving average is $80.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $84.59.

Tennant (NYSE:TNC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 17th. The industrial products company reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $328.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $324.00 million. Tennant had a net margin of 6.51% and a return on equity of 19.98%. On average, analysts predict that Tennant will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Tennant announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, February 13th that permits the company to buyback 2,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the industrial products company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Tennant Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a $0.295 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.73%. Tennant's dividend payout ratio is presently 26.94%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Tennant news, SVP Barb Balinski sold 1,717 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.42, for a total value of $148,383.14. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 11,829 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,022,262.18. This trade represents a 12.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Richard H. Zay sold 7,053 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.58, for a total transaction of $617,701.74. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 25,770 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,256,936.60. This represents a 21.49 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com lowered shares of Tennant from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th.

Tennant Company Profile

Tennant Company, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and markets floor cleaning equipment in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company offers a suite of products, including floor maintenance and cleaning equipment, detergent-free and other sustainable cleaning technologies, aftermarket parts and consumables, equipment maintenance and repair services, and asset management solutions.