Itron (NASDAQ:ITRI) Receives Buy Rating from Guggenheim

Itron (NASDAQ:ITRI)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reissued by equities research analysts at Guggenheim in a report released on Monday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They presently have a $155.00 target price on the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock, up from their prior target price of $133.00. Guggenheim’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 14.28% from the stock’s previous close.

ITRI has been the subject of several other reports. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on Itron from $124.00 to $121.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 5th. TD Cowen increased their target price on Itron from $139.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 20th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Itron from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, June 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $130.18.

Itron Price Performance

Shares of Itron stock opened at $135.63 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.93, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $122.81 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $110.75. Itron has a 52 week low of $90.11 and a 52 week high of $136.46. The stock has a market cap of $6.18 billion, a PE ratio of 24.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.35.

Itron (NASDAQ:ITRI) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $607.15 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $608.86 million. Itron had a return on equity of 19.65% and a net margin of 10.34%. The company’s revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.24 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Itron will post 5.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Itron

In related news, CFO Joan S. Hooper sold 938 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.95, for a total value of $107,823.10. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 89,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,272,391.80. This represents a 1.04% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP John F. Marcolini sold 3,783 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.73, for a total transaction of $441,589.59. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 21,865 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,552,301.45. The trade was a 14.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 20,905 shares of company stock valued at $2,439,202. Corporate insiders own 1.51% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Itron

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. GeoWealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Itron by 4,580.0% during the fourth quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 234 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 229 shares during the period. Wayfinding Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Itron during the first quarter worth about $45,000. CoreCap Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Itron by 25.5% during the fourth quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 616 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $67,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP boosted its holdings in Itron by 155.6% during the first quarter. Quarry LP now owns 910 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $95,000 after buying an additional 554 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Itron by 52.5% during the second quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,240 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $163,000 after buying an additional 427 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.19% of the company’s stock.

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.