Dole PLC $DOLE Shares Acquired by Shah Capital Management

Shah Capital Management increased its stake in shares of Dole PLC (NYSE:DOLE) by 67.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 461,521 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 186,124 shares during the quarter. Dole comprises about 1.3% of Shah Capital Management’s holdings, making the stock its 10th largest position. Shah Capital Management’s holdings in Dole were worth $6,918,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DOLE. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Dole by 30.6% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,938,971 shares of the company’s stock valued at $66,380,000 after acquiring an additional 1,155,983 shares during the last quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Dole by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 4,073,685 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,009,000 after purchasing an additional 111,081 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Dole by 7.8% in the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,815,916 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,284,000 after purchasing an additional 276,997 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Dole by 13.6% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,078,957 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,941,000 after purchasing an additional 248,703 shares during the period. Finally, Impax Asset Management Group plc raised its stake in shares of Dole by 9.8% during the third quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 1,675,545 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,519,000 after purchasing an additional 148,896 shares during the last quarter.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on DOLE. Wall Street Zen downgraded Dole from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “hold” rating and set a $15.00 price objective (down from $18.00) on shares of Dole in a research report on Monday. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Dole in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $15.50.

Dole Stock Performance

Shares of DOLE opened at $14.37 on Tuesday. Dole PLC has a 52-week low of $12.52 and a 52-week high of $16.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The company has a market capitalization of $1.37 billion, a PE ratio of 27.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $15.34 and a 200-day simple moving average of $14.45.

Dole (NYSE:DOLE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported $0.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.12 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $2.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.32 billion. Dole had a net margin of 0.56% and a return on equity of 7.81%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.16 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Dole PLC will post 1.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Dole Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 8th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.085 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 18th. This represents a $0.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Dole’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.15%.

Dole 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.