Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Reduces Stock Position in Domino’s Pizza, Inc. (NASDAQ:DPZ)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System trimmed its stake in shares of Domino’s Pizza, Inc. (NASDAQ:DPZ) by 6.5% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,856 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 130 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Domino’s Pizza were worth $779,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DPZ. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Domino’s Pizza by 1.4% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,666,158 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $716,681,000 after acquiring an additional 23,681 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its position in Domino’s Pizza by 4.8% during the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 10,381 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $4,465,000 after buying an additional 479 shares during the period. Moors & Cabot Inc. purchased a new stake in Domino’s Pizza during the third quarter valued at approximately $204,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Domino’s Pizza by 1.0% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 229,099 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $98,545,000 after acquiring an additional 2,201 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Trust N.A. grew its position in shares of Domino’s Pizza by 16.7% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 839 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $361,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.63% of the company’s stock.

Domino’s Pizza Trading Up 1.0 %

Domino’s Pizza stock opened at $466.04 on Tuesday. Domino’s Pizza, Inc. has a 12-month low of $396.06 and a 12-month high of $542.75. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $456.08 and a 200-day moving average price of $440.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.98 billion, a PE ratio of 28.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.06.

Domino’s Pizza (NASDAQ:DPZ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 24th. The restaurant operator reported $4.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.93 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $1.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.47 billion. Domino’s Pizza had a negative return on equity of 14.35% and a net margin of 12.26%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $4.48 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Domino’s Pizza, Inc. will post 16.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Domino’s Pizza Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $1.74 dividend. This represents a $6.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from Domino’s Pizza’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.51. Domino’s Pizza’s dividend payout ratio is 41.70%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DPZ has been the subject of several recent research reports. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and set a $520.00 price target on shares of Domino’s Pizza in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Domino’s Pizza from $545.00 to $510.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Domino’s Pizza from $402.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Argus downgraded Domino’s Pizza from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and set a $490.00 target price on shares of Domino’s Pizza in a research note on Monday, February 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $503.41.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Kevin Scott Morris sold 5,416 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $437.00, for a total value of $2,366,792.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 793 shares in the company, valued at approximately $346,541. This represents a 87.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kelly E. Garcia sold 2,104 shares of Domino’s Pizza stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $436.28, for a total transaction of $917,933.12. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 5,699 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,486,359.72. The trade was a 26.96 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 8,597 shares of company stock worth $3,762,052 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.76% of the company’s stock.

Domino’s Pizza Profile

Domino’s Pizza, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as a pizza company in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: U.S. Stores, International Franchise, and Supply Chain. It offers pizzas under the Domino’s brand name through company-owned and franchised stores.