WASHINGTON TRUST Co Grows Stock Holdings in Jacobs Solutions Inc. (NYSE:J)

WASHINGTON TRUST Co increased its stake in Jacobs Solutions Inc. (NYSE:J) by 8.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 126,330 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,133 shares during the quarter. WASHINGTON TRUST Co owned 0.10% of Jacobs Solutions worth $16,880,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in J. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Jacobs Solutions by 44.3% in the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 241 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP raised its position in Jacobs Solutions by 394.9% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 292 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 233 shares during the period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in Jacobs Solutions in the third quarter worth approximately $42,000. True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new position in shares of Jacobs Solutions during the 3rd quarter worth $44,000. Finally, Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Jacobs Solutions during the 4th quarter valued at $65,000. Institutional investors own 85.65% of the company’s stock.

Jacobs Solutions Stock Performance

J opened at $128.81 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 1.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.56, a PEG ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a fifty day moving average of $135.65 and a 200 day moving average of $140.57. Jacobs Solutions Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $110.95 and a fifty-two week high of $150.54.

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

Jacobs Solutions announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, February 4th that allows the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows 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 management believes its shares are undervalued.

Jacobs Solutions Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be issued a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. This is a positive change from Jacobs Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.99%. Jacobs Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Citigroup decreased their target price on Jacobs Solutions from $161.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Benchmark cut Jacobs Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Jacobs Solutions in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $152.00 target price on shares of Jacobs Solutions in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Jacobs Solutions from $137.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $155.89.

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.