Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI) Shares Acquired by Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its holdings in Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI) by 13.4% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 130,248 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after buying an additional 15,392 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Itron were worth $9,835,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ITRI. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Itron by 39.8% during the first quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 28,842 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $1,519,000 after purchasing an additional 8,213 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE lifted its holdings in Itron by 30.7% in the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,040 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 244 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC acquired a new position in Itron in the first quarter valued at approximately $299,000. Natixis Advisors L.P. lifted its holdings in Itron by 10.4% in the first quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 13,291 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $700,000 after acquiring an additional 1,256 shares during the period. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Itron by 57.2% in the first quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 24,551 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $1,293,000 after acquiring an additional 8,938 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.19% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Itron news, SVP Donald L. Reeves III sold 383 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.37, for a total transaction of $28,866.71. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 8,708 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $656,321.96. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, SVP Donald L. Reeves III sold 536 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.10, for a total value of $46,685.60. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 17,425 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,517,717.50. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Donald L. Reeves III sold 383 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.37, for a total value of $28,866.71. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 8,708 shares in the company, valued at approximately $656,321.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 30,467 shares of company stock valued at $2,752,520. Insiders own 1.45% of the company’s stock.

Itron Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of ITRI opened at $89.68 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a current ratio of 1.95. Itron, Inc. has a one year low of $50.60 and a one year high of $96.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.70, a PEG ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.41. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $87.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $74.80.

Itron (NASDAQ:ITRI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 26th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.75 by $0.48. The company had revenue of $577.17 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $569.90 million. Itron had a return on equity of 12.27% and a net margin of 4.46%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.71 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Itron, Inc. will post 3.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on ITRI. Canaccord Genuity Group raised Itron from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $68.00 to $105.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 27th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Itron from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. TheStreet raised Itron from a “c” rating to a “b-” rating in a report on Monday, February 26th. Raymond James downgraded Itron from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded Itron from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $68.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 27th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Itron has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $95.60.

About Itron

Itron, Inc, a technology, solutions, and service company, provides end-to-end solutions that help manage energy, water, and smart city operations worldwide. It operates in three segments: Device Solutions, Networked Solutions, and Outcomes. The Device Solutions segment offers hardware products that are used for measurement, control, or sensing, such as standard gas, electricity, water, and communicating meters, as well as heat and allocation products.