Pentair (NYSE:PNR) Raised to Hold at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research upgraded Pentair from “strong sell” to “hold,” while the broader analyst consensus remains “Hold” with an average price target of $87.19.
• Pentair’s latest quarter showed mixed results: EPS of $1.14 beat estimates of $1.12, but revenue fell 17% year over year to $932.6 million, missing expectations.
• Shares opened at $52.34, near the company’s 52-week low of $51.13, while institutional investors own a substantial 92.37% of outstanding shares.

Pentair (NYSE:PNR - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, Zacks reports.

PNR has been the subject of several other research reports. BNP Paribas Exane reissued an "underperform" rating and set a $64.00 price objective (down from $75.00) on shares of Pentair in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Mizuho cut their price objective on shares of Pentair from $100.00 to $85.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Seaport Research Partners downgraded Pentair from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. TD Cowen lowered their price target on Pentair from $75.00 to $65.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised Pentair to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $87.19.

Pentair Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE PNR opened at $52.34 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $8.35 billion, a PE ratio of 13.15, a P/E/G ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.04. Pentair has a 1-year low of $51.13 and a 1-year high of $112.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.45, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The company has a 50-day moving average of $59.93 and a two-hundred day moving average of $71.21.

Pentair (NYSE:PNR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.02. Pentair had a return on equity of 20.62% and a net margin of 16.24%.The business had revenue of $932.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $943.24 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.39 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 17.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Pentair will post 4.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Pentair

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PNR. Amundi increased its position in shares of Pentair by 13.1% during the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 4,237,659 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $369,208,000 after purchasing an additional 491,758 shares during the last quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Pentair by 26.1% during the 4th quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,550,935 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $161,514,000 after acquiring an additional 321,341 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its stake in shares of Pentair by 1,459.8% in the first quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,270,578 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $110,617,000 after purchasing an additional 1,189,122 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Pentair by 52.9% in the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,215,064 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $105,844,000 after purchasing an additional 420,140 shares during the period. Finally, 140 Summer Partners LP grew its stake in Pentair by 10.7% in the 4th quarter. 140 Summer Partners LP now owns 607,112 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $63,225,000 after buying an additional 58,609 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.37% of the company's stock.

About Pentair

Pentair plc NYSE: PNR is a water treatment and fluid management company that develops products and solutions for residential, commercial, industrial, and municipal customers. Its offerings are designed to help move, treat, filter, control, and conserve water across a range of applications.

The company's products include pool pumps, filters, heaters, cleaners, lighting, automation systems, and related equipment, as well as water softeners, filtration systems, pumps, valves, controls, and other water-treatment technologies.

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