Garmin (NYSE:GRMN) Downgraded by StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of Garmin (NYSE:GRMN) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Thursday.

GRMN has been the subject of a number of other reports. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Garmin from $140.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Garmin from $155.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Thursday. Barrington Research upped their target price on Garmin from $119.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. Tigress Financial reissued a strong-buy rating and issued a $175.00 price target (up previously from $165.00) on shares of Garmin in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on Garmin from $120.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $153.50.

Garmin Price Performance

Shares of GRMN traded up $0.64 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $165.97. The stock had a trading volume of 973,141 shares, compared to its average volume of 983,928. The company has a market capitalization of $31.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.40, a P/E/G ratio of 5.42 and a beta of 0.99. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $145.23 and its 200-day moving average price is $129.28. Garmin has a 52 week low of $99.56 and a 52 week high of $166.43.

Garmin (NYSE:GRMN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.42 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.42. Garmin had a net margin of 24.96% and a return on equity of 17.26%. The firm had revenue of $1.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.25 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.02 earnings per share. Garmin’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Garmin will post 5.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Garmin Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.81%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. Garmin’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.18%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Clifton A. Pemble sold 1,622 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.19, for a total value of $217,656.18. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 159,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,379,016.61. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Clifton A. Pemble sold 1,622 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.19, for a total transaction of $217,656.18. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 159,319 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,379,016.61. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Jonathan Burrell sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.89, for a total transaction of $2,233,350.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 653,834 shares in the company, valued at $97,349,344.26. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 99,476 shares of company stock worth $14,166,944. 19.89% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Garmin

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in GRMN. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV raised its position in Garmin by 17.6% during the first quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 542 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $81,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Garmin by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 2,168 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $279,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust boosted its holdings in Garmin by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 3,518 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $452,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Insight Folios Inc increased its position in Garmin by 3.5% during the first quarter. Insight Folios Inc now owns 2,768 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $412,000 after buying an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BayBridge Capital Group LLC raised its holdings in Garmin by 3.0% during the first quarter. BayBridge Capital Group LLC now owns 3,274 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $462,000 after buying an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. 73.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Garmin

Garmin Ltd. designs, develops, manufactures, markets, and distributes a range of wireless devices worldwide. Its Fitness segment offers running and multi-sport watches; cycling products; smartwatch devices; scales and monitors; and fitness accessories. This segment also provides Garmin Connect and Garmin Connect Mobile, which are web and mobile platforms where users can track and analyze their fitness, activities and workouts, and wellness data; and Connect IQ, an application development platform.