Principal Financial Group Inc. Increases Position in Tootsie Roll Industries, Inc. $TR

Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Tootsie Roll Industries, Inc. (NYSE:TR) by 28.4% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 106,566 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 23,564 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Tootsie Roll Industries were worth $4,467,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in shares of Tootsie Roll Industries by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 67,993 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,140,000 after purchasing an additional 2,893 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Tootsie Roll Industries by 56.6% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 17,428 shares of the company’s stock worth $549,000 after buying an additional 6,299 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in Tootsie Roll Industries by 29.1% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 215,015 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,769,000 after acquiring an additional 48,484 shares in the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS raised its holdings in Tootsie Roll Industries by 46.1% in the second quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 3,794 shares of the company’s stock valued at $127,000 after acquiring an additional 1,198 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Yousif Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Tootsie Roll Industries during the 2nd quarter valued at $212,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 14.28% of the company’s stock.

Tootsie Roll Industries Trading Up 2.4%

TR stock opened at $42.17 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $37.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $39.05. Tootsie Roll Industries, Inc. has a 12-month low of $29.13 and a 12-month high of $44.27. The firm has a market cap of $3.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.56 and a beta of 0.53.

Tootsie Roll Industries Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 24th were given a $0.09 dividend. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 24th. Tootsie Roll Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.91%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Tootsie Roll Industries in a research report on Monday, December 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Tootsie Roll Industries presently has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

About Tootsie Roll Industries

Tootsie Roll Industries, Inc is a U.S.-based confectionery company best known for producing Tootsie Rolls and Tootsie Pops. Headquartered in Chicago, the company manufactures a broad range of candy products, including fruit-flavored chews, gummies, mints and gum, under a portfolio of well-recognized brands. Its offerings are sold through mass-market retailers, convenience stores, specialty shops and vending channels.

The company traces its origins to 1896 when confectioner Leo Hirschfeld invented the Tootsie Roll in New York City.