Principal Financial Group Inc. Acquires 2,389 Shares of Molina Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:MOH)

Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in Molina Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:MOH) by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 74,160 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,389 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.13% of Molina Healthcare worth $25,553,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. National Pension Service boosted its stake in Molina Healthcare by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 115,645 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,847,000 after purchasing an additional 4,087 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in Molina Healthcare by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 13,074 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,505,000 after purchasing an additional 1,201 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its stake in Molina Healthcare by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 2,509 shares of the company’s stock valued at $865,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the period. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC bought a new stake in Molina Healthcare in the 3rd quarter valued at $414,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Molina Healthcare by 43.0% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 409 shares of the company’s stock valued at $141,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the period. 98.50% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MOH has been the subject of several recent research reports. TD Cowen reduced their price target on Molina Healthcare from $412.00 to $351.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $320.00 target price on shares of Molina Healthcare in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Barclays upped their target price on Molina Healthcare from $359.00 to $372.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Molina Healthcare from $405.00 to $331.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Molina Healthcare from $360.00 to $362.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $367.17.

Molina Healthcare Price Performance

Molina Healthcare stock opened at $318.91 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 1.54. Molina Healthcare, Inc. has a 52 week low of $272.69 and a 52 week high of $423.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.59. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $329.80 and a 200-day moving average of $326.35.

Molina Healthcare (NYSE:MOH) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $6.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.96 by $0.05. Molina Healthcare had a return on equity of 27.88% and a net margin of 2.92%. The business had revenue of $10.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.92 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.05 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Molina Healthcare, Inc. will post 23.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Molina Healthcare news, CAO Maurice Hebert sold 393 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $346.52, for a total value of $136,182.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 9,473 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,282,583.96. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Molina Healthcare Profile

Molina Healthcare, Inc provides managed healthcare services to low-income families and individuals under the Medicaid and Medicare programs and through the state insurance marketplaces. It operates in four segments: Medicaid, Medicare, Marketplace, and Other. The company served in across 19 states. The company was founded in 1980 and is headquartered in Long Beach, California.