Merit Financial Group LLC Makes New $202,000 Investment in BWX Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:BWXT)

Merit Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of BWX Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:BWXT - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 2,045 shares of the technology company's stock, valued at approximately $202,000.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Principal Securities Inc. boosted its stake in shares of BWX Technologies by 40.4% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 316 shares of the technology company's stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System lifted its holdings in BWX Technologies by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 25,400 shares of the technology company's stock worth $2,829,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Utah Retirement Systems boosted its position in BWX Technologies by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Utah Retirement Systems now owns 4,900 shares of the technology company's stock worth $546,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its stake in BWX Technologies by 40.5% in the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 406 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares during the period. Finally, Congress Wealth Management LLC DE increased its position in shares of BWX Technologies by 5.9% during the 4th quarter. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE now owns 2,249 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $251,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.39% of the company's stock.

BWX Technologies Stock Performance

BWXT stock traded up $1.39 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $141.06. 1,626,176 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 874,004. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.89 billion, a PE ratio of 44.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.51 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $115.26 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $111.91. BWX Technologies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $84.21 and a 52 week high of $145.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a current ratio of 2.02.

BWX Technologies (NYSE:BWXT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 5th. The technology company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $682.26 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $644.15 million. BWX Technologies had a return on equity of 30.26% and a net margin of 10.39%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.76 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that BWX Technologies, Inc. will post 3.23 EPS for the current year.

BWX Technologies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th were given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.71%. BWX Technologies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.85%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on BWXT. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of BWX Technologies from $160.00 to $135.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of BWX Technologies to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. CLSA restated an "outperform" rating and set a $177.60 price target (up previously from $153.00) on shares of BWX Technologies in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. William Blair initiated coverage on BWX Technologies in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. They issued an "outperform" rating on the stock. Finally, Maxim Group decreased their target price on BWX Technologies from $140.00 to $136.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, BWX Technologies currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $129.84.

BWX Technologies Company Profile

BWX Technologies, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells nuclear components in the United States, Canada, and internationally. It operates through two segments, Government Operations and Commercial Operations. The Government Operations segment designs and manufactures naval nuclear components, reactors, and nuclear fuel; fabrication activities; and supplies proprietary and sole-source valves, manifolds, and fittings to naval and commercial shipping customers.