Principal Financial Group Inc. Decreases Position in Fox Co. (NASDAQ:FOX)

Principal Financial Group Inc. reduced its position in shares of Fox Co. (NASDAQ:FOX) by 5.0% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 169,341 shares of the company’s stock after selling 8,987 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in FOX were worth $6,570,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. National Bank of Canada FI grew its stake in FOX by 212.7% during the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,437,637 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,780,000 after acquiring an additional 977,907 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of FOX by 7.5% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,639,382 shares of the company’s stock valued at $374,008,000 after purchasing an additional 671,511 shares during the last quarter. Independent Franchise Partners LLP lifted its position in FOX by 14.5% during the second quarter. Independent Franchise Partners LLP now owns 5,023,830 shares of the company’s stock worth $160,863,000 after buying an additional 636,247 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund boosted its stake in FOX by 448.4% during the third quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 712,900 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,661,000 after buying an additional 582,900 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Regal Partners Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of FOX in the 2nd quarter worth $16,398,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.41% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays raised shares of FOX to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of FOX from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th.

FOX Stock Performance

Shares of FOX stock opened at $45.74 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $43.55 and its 200-day simple moving average is $38.66. The company has a quick ratio of 2.33, a current ratio of 2.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The firm has a market cap of $20.89 billion, a PE ratio of 11.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 0.82. Fox Co. has a 52 week low of $25.82 and a 52 week high of $47.80.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Chairman Keith Rupert Murdoch sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.05, for a total transaction of $4,205,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 1,258,862 shares in the company, valued at $52,935,147.10. This trade represents a 7.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, COO John Nallen sold 182,481 shares of FOX stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.73, for a total value of $7,979,894.13. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 249,424 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,907,311.52. This represents a 42.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 1,053,505 shares of company stock valued at $47,705,970 over the last 90 days. 23.06% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About FOX

Fox Corporation operates as a news, sports, and entertainment company in the United States (U.S.). The company operates through four segments: Cable Network Programming, Television, Credible, and The FOX Studio Lot. The Cable Network Programming segment produces and licenses news and sports content for distribution through traditional cable television systems, direct broadcast satellite operators and telecommunication companies, virtual multi-channel video programming distributors, and other digital platforms primarily in the U.S.