Curtiss-Wright (NYSE:CW) Hits New 52-Week High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Curtiss-Wright shares hit a new 52-week high, trading as high as $760.93 and last around $761.81, reflecting strong recent momentum in the stock.
• The company’s latest quarterly results beat expectations, with EPS of $3.48 versus $3.32 expected and revenue of $913.69 million versus $863.83 million forecast, while revenue rose 13.4% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed but constructive: the stock has a Moderate Buy consensus, with a consensus price target of $746.67, while recent insider sales and a very low dividend yield of 0.1% are additional points investors may note.

Curtiss-Wright Corporation (NYSE:CW - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $760.93 and last traded at $761.8090, with a volume of 125132 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $719.02.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CW has been the subject of a number of research reports. Robert W. Baird set a $870.00 target price on shares of Curtiss-Wright in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $760.00 price objective on shares of Curtiss-Wright in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $748.00 price objective on shares of Curtiss-Wright in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Curtiss-Wright in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Curtiss-Wright from $728.00 to $775.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $746.67.

Curtiss-Wright Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $28.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.52. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $724.20 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $662.21.

Curtiss-Wright (NYSE:CW - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The aerospace company reported $3.48 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.32 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $913.69 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $863.83 million. Curtiss-Wright had a net margin of 14.17% and a return on equity of 20.00%. The business's revenue was up 13.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.82 EPS. Analysts forecast that Curtiss-Wright Corporation will post 15.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Curtiss-Wright Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.1%. Curtiss-Wright's payout ratio is currently 7.62%.

Insider Activity

In other Curtiss-Wright news, EVP John C. Watts sold 220 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $752.91, for a total transaction of $165,640.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 3,962 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,983,029.42. The trade was a 5.26% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO K Christopher Farkas sold 918 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $677.46, for a total transaction of $621,908.28. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 5,518 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,738,224.28. This represents a 14.26% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 9,080 shares of company stock worth $6,297,278. Insiders own 0.51% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Curtiss-Wright

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CW. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Curtiss-Wright during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its position in Curtiss-Wright by 53.8% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 60 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in Curtiss-Wright by 25.9% during the fourth quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 73 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Signature Equity Partners LLC grew its position in Curtiss-Wright by 140.0% during the first quarter. Signature Equity Partners LLC now owns 60 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in Curtiss-Wright during the fourth quarter worth about $42,000. 82.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Curtiss-Wright

Curtiss-Wright Corporation NYSE: CW is a diversified, global engineering company that designs, manufactures and services highly engineered products and integrated systems for the aerospace, defense, and industrial markets. Its offerings span a range of electromechanical, motion control and flow control technologies, including flight control and actuation systems, sensors and avionics components, pumps and valves, power conversion and heat exchangers, and platform integration solutions for marine and ground systems.

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