Hubbell (NYSE:HUBB) Cut to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Hubbell (NYSE:HUBB) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning.

A number of other analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Hubbell from $430.00 to $352.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Hubbell from $455.00 to $450.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on Hubbell from $422.00 to $400.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hubbell presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $449.38.

Hubbell Stock Performance

Shares of HUBB opened at $353.73 on Friday. Hubbell has a one year low of $299.43 and a one year high of $481.35. The business has a fifty day moving average of $356.69 and a 200 day moving average of $411.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.63, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.95.

Hubbell (NYSE:HUBB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The industrial products company reported $4.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.02 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $1.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.41 billion. Hubbell had a net margin of 13.82% and a return on equity of 28.62%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.69 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Hubbell will post 17.63 EPS for the current year.

Hubbell declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the industrial products company to purchase up to 2.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Hubbell Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $1.32 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $5.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.49%. Hubbell’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.77%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Alyssa R. Flynn sold 1,164 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $389.06, for a total value of $452,865.84. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 4,327 shares in the company, valued at $1,683,462.62. The trade was a 21.20 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.66% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HUBB. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Hubbell in the 4th quarter worth approximately $195,218,000. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its stake in Hubbell by 418.1% during the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 307,050 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $128,620,000 after buying an additional 247,786 shares during the period. Bain Capital Public Equity Management II LLC bought a new position in Hubbell during the fourth quarter valued at $95,868,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Hubbell by 52,429.8% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 192,259 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $636,200,000 after acquiring an additional 191,893 shares during the period. Finally, PointState Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of Hubbell in the 4th quarter worth about $78,443,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.16% of the company’s stock.

Hubbell Company Profile

Hubbell Incorporated, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and sells electrical and utility solutions in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments, Electrical Solutions and Utility Solutions. The Electrical Solution segment offers standard and special application wiring device products, rough-in electrical products, connector and grounding products, lighting fixtures, and other electrical equipment for use in industrial, commercial, and institutional facilities by electrical contractors, maintenance personnel, electricians, utilities, and telecommunications companies, as well as components and assemblies.