UBS Group Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Jabil (NYSE:JBL) Stock

Jabil (NYSE:JBL) had its target price increased by UBS Group from $152.00 to $157.00 in a research report sent to investors on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the technology company’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on JBL. StockNews.com downgraded Jabil from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Jabil from $160.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 24th. Barclays raised their target price on Jabil from $157.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $160.00 price target (up from $150.00) on shares of Jabil in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Jabil has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $167.50.

Jabil Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of JBL opened at $145.02 on Friday. Jabil has a fifty-two week low of $95.85 and a fifty-two week high of $174.80. The business has a 50-day moving average of $155.96 and a 200 day moving average of $138.39. The firm has a market cap of $15.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.06.

Jabil (NYSE:JBL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The technology company reported $1.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.83 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $6.73 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.40 billion. Jabil had a net margin of 4.71% and a return on equity of 41.87%. The company’s revenue was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.68 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Jabil will post 8.05 EPS for the current year.

Jabil Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.22%. Jabil’s dividend payout ratio is currently 3.07%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Jabil

In other news, Director Christopher S. Holland sold 3,400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.27, for a total value of $551,718.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 12,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,093,283. This represents a 20.86 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Steven A. Raymund sold 20,000 shares of Jabil stock in a transaction on Friday, January 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.30, for a total transaction of $3,026,000.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 119,108 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,021,040.40. This represents a 14.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 77,400 shares of company stock valued at $12,804,458 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.73% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Jabil

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in JBL. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Jabil during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new stake in Jabil in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new position in Jabil during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in shares of Jabil during the third quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Jabil by 90.3% in the 4th quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 274 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.39% of the company’s stock.

About Jabil

Jabil Inc provides manufacturing services and solutions worldwide. It operates in two segments, Electronics Manufacturing Services and Diversified Manufacturing Services. The company offers electronics design, production, and product management services; electronic circuit design services, such as application-specific integrated circuit design, firmware development, and rapid prototyping services; and designs plastic and metal enclosures that include the electro-mechanics, such as the printed circuit board assemblies (PCBA).