Baird Financial Group Inc. Has $2.12 Million Holdings in Hubbell Incorporated (NYSE:HUBB)

Baird Financial Group Inc. reduced its holdings in Hubbell Incorporated (NYSE:HUBB) by 4.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 5,062 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 242 shares during the quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Hubbell were worth $2,120,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Hubbell by 26.0% in the 4th quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 9,144 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,830,000 after acquiring an additional 1,886 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its holdings in Hubbell by 122.4% during the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 28,723 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $12,032,000 after buying an additional 15,806 shares in the last quarter. Smith Group Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Hubbell by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Smith Group Asset Management LLC now owns 67,042 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,083,000 after buying an additional 1,049 shares in the last quarter. First Pacific Financial lifted its holdings in Hubbell by 11,180.0% during the 4th quarter. First Pacific Financial now owns 1,692 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $709,000 after buying an additional 1,677 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Hubbell by 25.0% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 190 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $80,000 after buying an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. 88.16% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Hubbell from $430.00 to $352.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Hubbell from $422.00 to $400.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Hubbell from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $449.38.

Hubbell Stock Performance

HUBB stock opened at $356.66 on Monday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $343.12 and its 200-day moving average is $398.64. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The company has a market cap of $19.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.97. Hubbell Incorporated has a twelve month low of $299.43 and a twelve month high of $481.35.

Hubbell (NYSE:HUBB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $3.50 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.73 by ($0.23). The business had revenue of $1.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.39 billion. Hubbell had a return on equity of 28.62% and a net margin of 13.82%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.60 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Hubbell Incorporated will post 17.63 EPS for the current year.

Hubbell Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be issued a dividend of $1.32 per share. This represents a $5.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.48%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. Hubbell’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.72%.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Alyssa R. Flynn sold 1,164 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $389.06, for a total value of $452,865.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 4,327 shares in the company, valued at $1,683,462.62. This trade represents a 21.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.66% of the company’s stock.

About Hubbell

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.