AZZ (NYSE:AZZ) Reaches New 52-Week High - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• AZZ Inc.'s stock reached a new 52-week high at $114.78, with analysts projecting a potential upside of 25% from the current levels.
• The company recently posted quarterly earnings of $1.78 EPS, surpassing estimates, but revenue slightly fell short of expectations.
• AZZ announced an increase in its quarterly dividend from $0.17 to $0.20 per share, reflecting its continued commitment to returning value to shareholders.

Shares of AZZ Inc. (NYSE:AZZ - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $114.60 and last traded at $114.78, with a volume of 16487 shares. The stock had previously closed at $113.57.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on AZZ shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised AZZ to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday. Wall Street Zen raised AZZ from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 12th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of AZZ from $90.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Noble Financial reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of AZZ in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Sidoti lowered shares of AZZ from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $101.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AZZ presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $112.29.

AZZ Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $3.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.10 and a beta of 1.30. 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's 50-day simple moving average is $102.45 and its 200-day simple moving average is $93.53.

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

AZZ Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, July 10th were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 10th. This is a boost from AZZ's previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. AZZ's payout ratio is presently 9.27%.

Insider Buying and Selling at AZZ

In related news, COO Bryan Lee Stovall sold 5,000 shares of AZZ stock in a transaction on Monday, August 11th. The stock was 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 owned 22,709 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,534,324.40. This trade represents a 18.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Kurt L. Russell sold 10,321 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.21, for a total value of $1,158,119.41. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 16,804 shares in the company, valued at $1,885,576.84. This trade represents a 38.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 46,837 shares of company stock worth $5,195,318. 1.77% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AZZ

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in AZZ. Huntington National Bank lifted its stake in AZZ by 206.7% in the second quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 273 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 184 shares during the last quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of AZZ during the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Signaturefd LLC lifted its stake in shares of AZZ by 110.0% in the 1st quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 399 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 209 shares during the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. bought a new stake in AZZ in the second quarter worth $34,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in AZZ by 39.6% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 374 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.93% of the company's stock.

About AZZ

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.