Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC Buys Shares of 16,497 Jacobs Solutions Inc. (NYSE:J)

Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC purchased a new position in Jacobs Solutions Inc. (NYSE:J) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 16,497 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,204,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of J. Avalon Trust Co bought a new position in Jacobs Solutions during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Jacobs Solutions by 71.9% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 275 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP grew its holdings in Jacobs Solutions by 394.9% during 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. Assetmark Inc. raised its position in Jacobs Solutions by 42.7% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 334 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Jacobs Solutions by 215.7% in the 4th quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 363 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 248 shares during the last quarter. 85.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $150.00 target price on shares of Jacobs Solutions in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Citigroup cut their price objective on Jacobs Solutions from $161.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Jacobs Solutions from $137.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on Jacobs Solutions from $154.00 to $148.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Jacobs Solutions presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $153.86.

Jacobs Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of J stock opened at $110.97 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $126.71 and its 200-day simple moving average is $134.79. The company has a market capitalization of $13.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. Jacobs Solutions Inc. has a 1-year low of $106.23 and a 1-year high of $156.31.

Jacobs Solutions (NYSE:J) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.29 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $2.93 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.92 billion. Jacobs Solutions had a return on equity of 14.87% and a net margin of 4.28%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.45 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Jacobs Solutions Inc. will post 6.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Jacobs Solutions Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This is a boost from Jacobs Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.15%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. Jacobs Solutions’s payout ratio is currently 26.39%.

Jacobs Solutions announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program 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 shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Jacobs Solutions Profile

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.