AZZ Inc. (NYSE:AZZ) COO Sells $558,000.00 in Stock

Key Points

• AZZ Inc. COO Bryan Lee Stovall sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock for a total of $558,000, leading to an 18.04% decrease in his ownership stake.
• The company recently declared an increased quarterly dividend of $0.20, up from the previous $0.17, with a current yield of 0.7%.
• AZZ Inc. reported earnings of $1.78 per share, exceeding analysts' expectations, and its revenue grew by 2.1% year-over-year to $421.96 million.

AZZ Inc. (NYSE:AZZ - Get Free Report) COO Bryan Lee Stovall sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.60, for a total transaction of $558,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 22,709 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,534,324.40. This represents a 18.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link.

Bryan Lee Stovall also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, July 16th, Bryan Lee Stovall sold 5,000 shares of AZZ stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.98, for a total transaction of $539,900.00.

AZZ Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of AZZ stock traded up $1.17 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $111.42. 391,187 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 265,878. The company's 50-day moving average price is $100.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $92.59. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The company has a market cap of $3.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.91 and a beta of 1.30. AZZ Inc. has a 12 month low of $70.90 and a 12 month high of $114.49.

AZZ (NYSE:AZZ - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 9th. The industrial products company reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.19. AZZ had a return on equity of 15.54% and a net margin of 16.40%. The business had revenue of $421,962 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $435.91 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.46 EPS. AZZ's revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that AZZ Inc. will post 5.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AZZ Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 10th were paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 10th. This is a positive change from AZZ's previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. AZZ's dividend payout ratio is currently 9.27%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on AZZ shares. Noble Financial restated an "outperform" rating on shares of AZZ in a report on Monday, July 14th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of AZZ from $90.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of AZZ from $90.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of AZZ from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 12th. Finally, Sidoti downgraded shares of AZZ from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $101.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Monday, June 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, AZZ currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $108.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Huntington National Bank lifted its position in shares of AZZ by 206.7% during the second quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 273 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC raised its holdings in shares of AZZ by 110.0% in the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 399 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 209 shares in the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. bought a new stake in shares of AZZ in the second quarter valued at about $34,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of AZZ by 39.6% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 374 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP grew its stake in AZZ by 2,150.0% in the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 855 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $70,000 after purchasing an additional 817 shares during the last quarter. 90.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AZZ Company Profile

AZZ Inc provides hot-dip galvanizing and coil coating solutions in North America. It offers metal finishing solutions for corrosion protection, including hot-dip galvanizing, spin galvanizing, powder coating, anodizing, and plating to steel fabrication and other industries, as well as to fabricators or manufacturers that provide services to the transmission and distribution, bridge and highway, petrochemical, and general industrial markets; and original equipment manufacturers.

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