Russell Investments Group Ltd. Buys 387,595 Shares of Primo Water Co. (NYSE:PRMW)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its stake in Primo Water Co. (NYSE:PRMW) by 35.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,473,607 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 387,595 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned about 0.92% of Primo Water worth $22,180,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Signaturefd LLC grew its position in Primo Water by 358.1% in the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,364 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 1,848 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Primo Water in the third quarter valued at $102,000. Aigen Investment Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Primo Water during the third quarter worth $139,000. Blueshift Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Primo Water during the third quarter worth $159,000. Finally, Gitterman Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Primo Water during the third quarter worth $204,000. 87.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Primo Water Price Performance

Primo Water stock opened at $19.00 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $17.53 and its 200 day simple moving average is $15.62. The stock has a market cap of $3.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.75, a P/E/G ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 1.12. Primo Water Co. has a 12-month low of $12.27 and a 12-month high of $19.15. The company has a quick ratio of 1.92, a current ratio of 2.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88.

Primo Water (NYSE:PRMW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The company reported $0.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.17 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $438.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $582.93 million. Primo Water had a net margin of 10.82% and a return on equity of 8.55%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Primo Water Co. will post 0.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Primo Water Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 8th were paid a $0.09 dividend. This is a positive change from Primo Water’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.89%. Primo Water’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PRMW has been the topic of several research analyst reports. TD Securities decreased their target price on Primo Water from $26.00 to $23.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Primo Water from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. StockNews.com cut Primo Water from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, April 27th. Finally, Raymond James cut Primo Water from a “strong-buy” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $21.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $20.75.

About Primo Water

Primo Water Corporation provides pure-play water solutions for residential and commercial customers. It offers bottled water, water dispensers, purified bottled water, self-service refill drinking water, premium spring, mineral water, sparkling and flavored essence water, filtration units, and coffee.