T. Rowe Price Group (NASDAQ:TROW) Sets New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

Shares of T. Rowe Price Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:TROW) hit a new 52-week high on Thursday . The company traded as high as $118.47 and last traded at $117.9840, with a volume of 585373 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $116.11.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on TROW shares. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on T. Rowe Price Group from $107.00 to $91.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Evercore upped their price objective on shares of T. Rowe Price Group from $106.00 to $111.00 in a report on Monday, June 8th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of T. Rowe Price Group from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of T. Rowe Price Group from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on T. Rowe Price Group from $98.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, T. Rowe Price Group currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $100.54.

T. Rowe Price Group Trading Up 1.6%

The company has a market capitalization of $25.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.78 and a beta of 1.47. The company’s 50 day moving average is $105.01 and its 200-day moving average is $100.13.

T. Rowe Price Group (NASDAQ:TROW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The asset manager reported $2.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.37 by $0.15. T. Rowe Price Group had a net margin of 28.28% and a return on equity of 20.60%. The business had revenue of $1.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.85 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.23 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that T. Rowe Price Group, Inc. will post 9.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

T. Rowe Price Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 15th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.4%. T. Rowe Price Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 55.73%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Stephon A. Jackson sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.56, for a total value of $307,680.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 83,883 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,603,040.48. This represents a 3.45% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On T. Rowe Price Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. TD Private Client Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of T. Rowe Price Group by 91.8% during the fourth quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 257 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of T. Rowe Price Group by 540.9% during the 4th quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 282 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 238 shares during the period. Canton Hathaway LLC purchased a new position in shares of T. Rowe Price Group in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC boosted its stake in shares of T. Rowe Price Group by 170.3% in the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 300 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 189 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DV Equities LLC bought a new stake in shares of T. Rowe Price Group in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Institutional investors own 73.39% of the company’s stock.

About T. Rowe Price Group

T. Rowe Price Group, Inc is a global investment management firm headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland, founded by Thomas Rowe Price Jr. in 1937. The company provides a broad range of investment products and services for individual investors, financial intermediaries, retirement plan sponsors and institutional clients. Its offerings are built around active investment management and in-house research across equity, fixed income and multi-asset strategies, reflecting a long history as a research-driven asset manager.

The firm’s product lineup includes mutual funds, separate accounts, collective investment trusts, target-date and target-risk funds, and managed account solutions, as well as services for defined contribution and defined benefit retirement plans.