3. Perrigo Company plc (NYSE:PRGO)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 28
Dividend Yield as of May 23: 2.72%
Viking Global’s Stake Value: $97,046,000
Perrigo Company plc (NYSE:PRGO) is an Irish-registered pharmaceutical company, that derives 70% of its net sales from the US healthcare system.
In February, Perrigo Company plc (NYSE:PRGO) announced a quarterly dividend of $0.26 per share, an 8.3% increase from the prior dividend of $0.24 per share. The company has been growing its annual dividend consecutively for the past 19 years. Moreover, in the past five years, Perrigo Company plc (NYSE:PRGO) has raised its dividend at an annual average rate of 12.34%.
Perrigo Company plc (NYSE:PRGO) is one of the latest holdings of Viking Global. The hedge fund started building its position in the company with shares worth over $97 million, which made up 0.39% of Andreas Halvorsen’s portfolio.
In Q1 2022, Camber Capital Management was one of the leading shareholders of Perrigo Company plc (NYSE:PRGO), with shares worth over $96 million. Moreover, 28 hedge funds in Insider Monkey’s database held a $502 million worth of stake in the company in Q4 2021.
Heartland Advisors mentioned Perrigo Company plc (NYSE:PRGO) in its Q4 2021 investor letter. Here is what the firm has to say:
“Shares of many Health Care companies were down as the continuing threat of COVID-19 dampened demand for elective medical procedures and health care providers struggled to maintain adequate staffing in the face of burnout and resistance to vaccine mandates. The Fund’s holdings performed in line on a relative basis but detracted from absolute results.
Instead of trading on every new wrinkle in the ongoing pandemic, we’ve taken the long view by focusing on owning businesses that we believe are well positioned to drive consistent growth when the shadow of COVID-19 fades.
Perrigo Company PLC (PRGO), a pharmaceutical business and leading maker of private-label over-the-counter products, is one such opportunity. While the company is lumped in with more volatile pharma companies, we view it as a consumer-packaged goods business that offers a one-of-a-kind product platform characterized by a stable, growing, and valuable cash flow stream.
A new management team with a strong track record was hired in late 2018 to rectify stumbles made by previous leadership. We’ve been pleased with the strides taken and believe recent supply chain issues and reduced demand for its cold and cough products are directly related to COVID-19 and are, therefore, temporary. With shares trading at close to stated book value and 13X next year’s estimated earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA), the team views Perrigo as a compelling opportunity for the quarters to come.”
