Principal Financial Group Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Imperial Oil Limited $IMO

Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Imperial Oil Limited (NYSEAMERICAN:IMO) (TSE:IMO) by 91.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,938 shares of the energy company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,128 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Imperial Oil were worth $1,355,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Imperial Oil by 5.0% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 34,218 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $2,475,000 after buying an additional 1,627 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its stake in Imperial Oil by 54.7% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 11,887 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $860,000 after acquiring an additional 4,201 shares during the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth purchased a new stake in Imperial Oil during the first quarter valued at approximately $200,000. Stephens Inc. AR lifted its stake in shares of Imperial Oil by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 15,090 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $1,199,000 after purchasing an additional 229 shares during the last quarter. Finally, IMG Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Imperial Oil in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. 20.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Imperial Oil Price Performance

Shares of IMO stock opened at $117.42 on Wednesday. Imperial Oil Limited has a twelve month low of $58.76 and a twelve month high of $120.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $97.30 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $93.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $56.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.64 and a beta of 0.70.

Imperial Oil Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 5th will be issued a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 5th. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. This is an increase from Imperial Oil’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. Imperial Oil’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.26%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Raymond James Financial downgraded Imperial Oil from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, December 8th. TD Securities reissued a “sell” rating on shares of Imperial Oil in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. BMO Capital Markets cut shares of Imperial Oil from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Imperial Oil in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $115.00.

Imperial Oil Profile

Imperial Oil (NYSEAMERICAN: IMO) is a Canadian integrated energy company involved in the exploration, production, refining and marketing of petroleum and petrochemical products. Headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, Imperial has operated in Canada for well over a century and is one of the country’s long-standing energy firms. The company is majority-owned by Exxon Mobil Corporation, which provides strategic and technical links to global upstream and downstream capabilities.

Imperial’s operations span upstream activities—exploration and production of crude oil, natural gas and oil-sands resources—and downstream operations including refining, manufacturing of fuels and lubricants, petrochemical products, and retail distribution.