Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 27,337 Shares of Northwest Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:NWBI)

Principal Financial Group Inc. reduced its position in shares of Northwest Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:NWBI) by 4.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 600,445 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock after selling 27,337 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Northwest Bancshares were worth $8,034,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Northwest Bancshares by 93.7% in the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,935 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 1,420 shares during the last quarter. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Northwest Bancshares in the second quarter valued at approximately $61,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its holdings in shares of Northwest Bancshares by 66.5% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 5,769 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $67,000 after acquiring an additional 2,304 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Northwest Bancshares by 1,238.0% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 5,459 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 5,051 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its holdings in Northwest Bancshares by 45.5% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 7,195 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $83,000 after acquiring an additional 2,249 shares during the period. 66.32% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Northwest Bancshares Stock Down 1.2 %

Northwest Bancshares stock opened at $14.43 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $13.54 and a 200-day moving average price of $12.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. Northwest Bancshares, Inc. has a twelve month low of $10.45 and a twelve month high of $15.35. The company has a market capitalization of $1.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.99 and a beta of 0.62.

Northwest Bancshares (NASDAQ:NWBI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The savings and loans company reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.26. The company had revenue of $199.21 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $140.80 million. Northwest Bancshares had a net margin of 13.19% and a return on equity of 8.24%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.31 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Northwest Bancshares, Inc. will post 1.02 EPS for the current year.

Northwest Bancshares Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th were issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. Northwest Bancshares’s payout ratio is currently 105.26%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Northwest Bancshares from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th.

Northwest Bancshares Company Profile

Northwest Bancshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Northwest Bank, a state-chartered savings bank that provides personal and business banking solutions. The company accepts various deposits, including checking, savings, money market deposit, term certificate, and individual retirement accounts.