Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Acquires 329 Shares of Jacobs Solutions Inc. (NYSE:J)

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Jacobs Solutions Inc. (NYSE:J) by 2.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,179 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 329 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in Jacobs Solutions were worth $1,761,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in J. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Jacobs Solutions by 2.4% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,145,665 shares of the company’s stock valued at $410,444,000 after buying an additional 73,566 shares during the period. Ninety One UK Ltd boosted its position in shares of Jacobs Solutions by 29.2% in the fourth quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 1,988,092 shares of the company’s stock valued at $265,649,000 after acquiring an additional 449,161 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC grew its stake in Jacobs Solutions by 3.2% during the third quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 1,040,032 shares of the company’s stock valued at $143,263,000 after acquiring an additional 32,650 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Jacobs Solutions by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 760,516 shares of the company’s stock worth $99,552,000 after acquiring an additional 14,405 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in Jacobs Solutions by 19.9% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 650,110 shares of the company’s stock worth $85,099,000 after purchasing an additional 107,849 shares in the last quarter. 85.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on J. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Jacobs Solutions in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Benchmark lowered Jacobs Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $150.00 price objective on shares of Jacobs Solutions in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of Jacobs Solutions from $154.00 to $148.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Jacobs Solutions from $137.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $155.89.

Jacobs Solutions Price Performance

Shares of Jacobs Solutions stock opened at $134.54 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 1.25. Jacobs Solutions Inc. has a 52-week low of $110.95 and a 52-week high of $150.54. The company has a fifty day moving average of $136.17 and a 200-day moving average of $140.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.72.

Jacobs Solutions (NYSE:J) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.29 by $0.04. Jacobs Solutions had a net margin of 4.28% and a return on equity of 14.87%. The business had revenue of $2.93 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.92 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.45 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Jacobs Solutions Inc. will post 6.05 EPS for the current year.

Jacobs Solutions Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.95%. This is a positive change from Jacobs Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. Jacobs Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.92%.

Jacobs Solutions announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, February 4th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

About Jacobs Solutions

Jacobs Solutions Inc provides consulting, technical, engineering, scientific, and project delivery services for the government and private sectors in the United States, Europe, Canada, India, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, the Middle East, and Africa. It operates through Critical Mission Solutions, People & Places Solutions, Divergent Solutions, and PA Consulting segments.