Dole PLC $DOLE Shares Sold by Impax Asset Management Group plc

Impax Asset Management Group plc trimmed its holdings in Dole PLC (NYSE:DOLE) by 5.4% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,584,474 shares of the company’s stock after selling 91,071 shares during the period. Impax Asset Management Group plc’s holdings in Dole were worth $23,751,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of DOLE. Signaturefd LLC lifted its holdings in Dole by 190.2% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,680 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 1,101 shares during the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its holdings in Dole by 120.8% in the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,835 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 1,004 shares during the last quarter. Westfuller Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Dole in the 3rd quarter valued at about $49,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue acquired a new stake in Dole in the 3rd quarter valued at about $50,000. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Dole by 269.0% in the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 3,716 shares of the company’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 2,709 shares during the last quarter.

Dole Trading Down 0.2%

NYSE:DOLE opened at $15.11 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. Dole PLC has a 1-year low of $12.52 and a 1-year high of $16.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.67. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $15.05 and a 200 day simple moving average of $14.64.

Dole (NYSE:DOLE) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported $0.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.12 by $0.02. Dole had a net margin of 0.56% and a return on equity of 7.81%. The company had revenue of $2.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.32 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.16 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Dole PLC will post 1.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Dole Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 18th were paid a dividend of $0.085 per share. This represents a $0.34 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 18th. Dole’s payout ratio is 64.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DOLE has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Dole in a report on Monday, December 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $15.00 price target (down from $18.00) on shares of Dole in a research report on Monday, March 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Dole from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Dole has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $15.50.

Dole Company Profile

Dole plc is a global producer, marketer and distributor of fresh fruits and vegetables. The company’s product range includes bananas, pineapples, berries, grapes, salads and a variety of other fresh and packaged produce, sold under the Dole brand and through private-label arrangements. Dole’s operations span the full fresh-produce value chain, from farming and sourcing to packing, ripening, cold‑chain logistics and wholesale and retail distribution, supporting both retail grocery and foodservice customers.

The company traces its commercial heritage to the early 20th century Hawaiian pineapple business founded by James Dole and has evolved through subsequent corporate restructurings and combinations.