Principal Financial Group Inc. Lowers Stake in Standex International Co. (NYSE:SXI)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Standex International Co. (NYSE:SXI) by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 59,970 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,842 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Standex International were worth $10,961,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Standex International by 114.5% during the 3rd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 11,227 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,052,000 after buying an additional 5,994 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE raised its position in shares of Standex International by 15.2% during the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 623 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $114,000 after buying an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Standex International by 18,180.0% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 914 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $167,000 after buying an additional 909 shares in the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Standex International by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 556,244 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $101,670,000 after buying an additional 4,281 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates raised its position in shares of Standex International by 32.3% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 47,138 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,616,000 after buying an additional 11,516 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.35% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on SXI shares. Barrington Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $220.00 price objective on shares of Standex International in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. DA Davidson lifted their target price on shares of Standex International from $203.00 to $211.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Standex International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, Benchmark lifted their target price on shares of Standex International from $210.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th.

Standex International Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SXI opened at $202.27 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $2.44 billion, a PE ratio of 33.16, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.03. Standex International Co. has a 52 week low of $131.96 and a 52 week high of $211.90. The company has a quick ratio of 2.83, a current ratio of 3.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The company’s fifty day moving average is $182.43 and its 200 day moving average is $174.78.

Standex International (NYSE:SXI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $170.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $178.94 million. Standex International had a net margin of 10.26% and a return on equity of 13.18%. The company’s revenue was down 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.74 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Standex International Co. will post 7.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Standex International Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be issued a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. This is a positive change from Standex International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Standex International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.98%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Thomas J. Hansen sold 1,661 shares of Standex International stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.41, for a total transaction of $349,491.01. Following the sale, the director now owns 11,431 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,405,196.71. The trade was a 12.69 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Ademir Sarcevic sold 3,800 shares of Standex International stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.64, for a total transaction of $690,232.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 19,686 shares in the company, valued at $3,575,765.04. The trade was a 16.18 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Standex International Profile

Standex International Corporation, together with subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of various products and services for commercial and industrial markets in the United States and internationally. It operates through five segments: Electronics, Engraving, Scientific, Engineering Technologies, and Specialty Solutions.