Principal Financial Group Inc. Boosts Stake in Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI)

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI) by 6.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 263,972 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after buying an additional 15,895 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Itron were worth $28,662,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Continuum Advisory LLC raised its position in Itron by 42.1% during the third quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 344 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. Quarry LP raised its position in Itron by 29.0% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 454 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd raised its position in Itron by 26.1% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 536 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the period. Hager Investment Management Services LLC purchased a new stake in Itron during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $67,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in Itron by 21.7% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 724 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $77,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares during the period. 96.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ITRI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com upgraded Itron from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Itron from $123.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Itron from $110.00 to $119.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Guggenheim upped their target price on Itron from $128.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Roth Mkm upped their target price on Itron from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $123.92.

Itron Stock Down 3.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:ITRI opened at $93.94 on Friday. Itron, Inc. has a 52-week low of $73.64 and a 52-week high of $124.90. The stock has a market cap of $4.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.46. The business’s 50 day moving average is $105.60 and its 200 day moving average is $106.78. The company has a quick ratio of 2.83, a current ratio of 3.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91.

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.