Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 12,383 Shares of Loews Co. (NYSE:L)

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Loews Co. (NYSE:L – Get Rating) by 5.0% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 236,758 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 12,383 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Loews were worth $13,810,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of L. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. increased its position in shares of Loews by 416.7% during the fourth quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 496 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the period. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Loews during the second quarter worth about $36,000. CI Investments Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Loews by 61.8% during the third quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 626 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 239 shares in the last quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in Loews by 165.1% in the fourth quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 835 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 520 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Loews by 97.9% in the 3rd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 845 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 418 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 64.00% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com assumed coverage on Loews in a research report on Thursday, May 18th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock.

Insider Activity at Loews

In related news, major shareholder Corp Loews purchased 34,996 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 1st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $38.93 per share, with a total value of $1,362,394.28. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 243,918,659 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,495,753,394.87. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Philip A. Laskawy sold 625 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.96, for a total value of $38,100.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 7,365 shares in the company, valued at $448,970.40. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, major shareholder Corp Loews purchased 34,996 shares of Loews stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 1st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $38.93 per share, for a total transaction of $1,362,394.28. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 243,918,659 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,495,753,394.87. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 18.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Loews Stock Down 1.3 %

Loews stock opened at $57.17 on Thursday. Loews Co. has a 12 month low of $49.36 and a 12 month high of $66.34. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $57.09 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $58.12. The company has a current ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The firm has a market cap of $13.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.96 and a beta of 0.82.

Loews (NYSE:L – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 1st. The insurance provider reported $1.61 earnings per share for the quarter. Loews had a return on equity of 7.68% and a net margin of 7.27%. The firm had revenue of $3.78 billion during the quarter.

Loews Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 6th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 24th will be given a dividend of $0.0625 per share. This represents a $0.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 23rd. Loews’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5.67%.

Loews Company Profile

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Loews Corp. is a holding company, which engages in the business of commercial property and casualty insurance, transportation and storage of natural gas and natural gas liquids, and operation of a chain of hotels. It operates through the following segments: CNA Financial Corporation, Boardwalk Pipeline Partners, LP and Loews Hotels Holding Corporation, and Corporate.