Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 40,894 Shares of Vector Group Ltd. (NYSE:VGR)

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Vector Group Ltd. (NYSE:VGR) by 5.1% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 755,269 shares of the company’s stock after selling 40,894 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Vector Group were worth $9,675,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VGR. Quarry LP lifted its position in shares of Vector Group by 82.1% during the first quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,709 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 1,221 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its stake in Vector Group by 187.4% in the 1st quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,777 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 2,463 shares in the last quarter. Antonetti Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Vector Group by 52.8% in the 2nd quarter. Antonetti Capital Management LLC now owns 4,340 shares of the company’s stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 1,500 shares in the last quarter. Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC acquired a new stake in Vector Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $99,000. Finally, Point72 Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in Vector Group during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $90,000. 64.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vector Group news, insider J Bryant Kirkland III bought 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 11th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $10.32 per share, with a total value of $103,200.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 450,623 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,650,429.36. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 7.14% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Vector Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 13th.

Vector Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE VGR opened at $10.73 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $1.67 billion, a PE ratio of 9.84 and a beta of 1.12. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $10.65 and a 200 day moving average of $11.53. Vector Group Ltd. has a one year low of $9.86 and a one year high of $14.39.

About Vector Group

Vector Group Ltd., through its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells cigarettes in the United States. It operates in two segments, Tobacco and Real Estate. The company produces cigarettes under the EAGLE 20's, Pyramid, Montego, Grand Prix, Liggett Select, Eve, and USA brand names, as well as various partner and private label brands.