Van ECK Associates Corp Lowers Holdings in Hubbell Incorporated (NYSE:HUBB)

Van ECK Associates Corp lessened its stake in shares of Hubbell Incorporated (NYSE:HUBB) by 3.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,404 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 337 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Hubbell were worth $3,939,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. OLD National Bancorp IN lifted its stake in Hubbell by 3.8% in the third quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 596 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $255,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its position in Hubbell by 12.3% during the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 228 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $96,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. JGP Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Hubbell by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. JGP Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,110 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $884,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Avestar Capital LLC lifted its position in Hubbell by 5.1% during the third quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 577 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $247,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ballentine Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Hubbell by 3.2% in the third quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 956 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $410,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.16% of the company’s stock.

Hubbell Stock Performance

Shares of HUBB stock opened at $392.25 on Thursday. Hubbell Incorporated has a one year low of $346.13 and a one year high of $481.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.64. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $422.89 and its 200-day moving average price is $423.71. The firm has a market cap of $21.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.92.

Hubbell (NYSE:HUBB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The industrial products company reported $4.10 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.02 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $1.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.41 billion. Hubbell had a net margin of 13.82% and a return on equity of 28.62%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.69 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Hubbell Incorporated will post 17.63 EPS for the current year.

Hubbell declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, February 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the industrial products company to repurchase up to 2.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Hubbell Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a $1.32 dividend. This represents a $5.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.35%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Hubbell’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.77%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HUBB has been the topic of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Hubbell from $455.00 to $450.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Hubbell from $407.00 to $445.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on Hubbell in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $535.00 target price for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of Hubbell from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $493.00 to $473.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Hubbell from $402.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $471.50.

Hubbell Profile

Hubbell Incorporated, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and sells electrical and utility solutions in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments, Electrical Solutions and Utility Solutions. The Electrical Solution segment offers standard and special application wiring device products, rough-in electrical products, connector and grounding products, lighting fixtures, and other electrical equipment for use in industrial, commercial, and institutional facilities by electrical contractors, maintenance personnel, electricians, utilities, and telecommunications companies, as well as components and assemblies.