Acadian Asset Management LLC Acquires New Position in Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI)

Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 20,738 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,050,000.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in Itron during the 1st quarter worth about $401,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Itron during the fourth quarter valued at about $24,504,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Itron by 1,331.3% during the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 200,400 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $19,832,000 after buying an additional 186,399 shares during the period. Kingdon Capital Management L.L.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Itron in the first quarter worth about $7,170,000. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd bought a new position in shares of Itron in the first quarter valued at approximately $5,718,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.19% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on ITRI shares. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Itron from $115.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Itron from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Itron from $104.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on Itron in a report on Thursday, September 5th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $133.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Guggenheim raised Itron from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 price objective for the company in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Itron has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $118.64.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Thomas Deitrich sold 887 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.15, for a total value of $90,607.05. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 205,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,968,943.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Itron news, CEO Thomas Deitrich sold 887 shares of Itron stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.15, for a total value of $90,607.05. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 205,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,968,943.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Joan S. Hooper sold 509 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.15, for a total value of $51,994.35. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 72,338 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,389,326.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 5,776 shares of company stock valued at $584,721. 1.45% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Itron Stock Up 3.0 %

Shares of ITRI opened at $102.54 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $4.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.47, a P/E/G ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.47. Itron, Inc. has a 1 year low of $56.11 and a 1 year high of $113.07. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $100.46 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $99.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 3.16 and a quick ratio of 2.61.

Itron (NASDAQ:ITRI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $609.07 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $599.25 million. Itron had a net margin of 7.98% and a return on equity of 16.42%. The firm’s revenue was up 12.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.65 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Itron, Inc. will post 4.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.