Machina Capital S.A.S. Purchases Shares of 3,329 Hubbell Inc (NYSE:HUBB)

Key Points

• Machina Capital S.A.S. acquired 3,329 shares of Hubbell Inc, valued at approximately $1.1 million, during the first quarter, reflecting growing interest from institutional investors as they now own 88.16% of the company's stock.
• CEO Gerben Bakker sold 7,723 shares, indicative of insider trading activity, reducing his position by 8.6%, while the company reported a decline in quarterly earnings.
• Hubbell has declared a quarterly dividend of $1.32 per share, with a dividend yield of 1.19% and an annualized dividend payout of $5.28, reflecting the company's ongoing commitment to return value to shareholders.

Machina Capital S.A.S. purchased a new stake in Hubbell Inc (NYSE:HUBB - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 3,329 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $1,102,000.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Tsfg LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hubbell during the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Hubbell by 166.7% during the 4th quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 104 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the period. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Hubbell during the 1st quarter worth approximately $49,000. CX Institutional acquired a new position in shares of Hubbell during the 1st quarter worth approximately $49,000. Finally, Intact Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Hubbell during the 1st quarter worth approximately $66,000. 88.16% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Gerben Bakker sold 7,723 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $384.63, for a total transaction of $2,970,497.49. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 82,101 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $31,578,507.63. This represents a 8.60% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Carlos M. Cardoso sold 400 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $386.29, for a total value of $154,516.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,727 shares in the company, valued at approximately $667,122.83. The trade was a 18.81% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.66% of the company's stock.

Hubbell Trading Up 1.2%

NYSE:HUBB traded up $5.11 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $442.61. The company had a trading volume of 489,931 shares, compared to its average volume of 486,468. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The company has a 50-day moving average of $404.50 and a 200 day moving average of $383.31. The company has a market cap of $23.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.99. Hubbell Inc has a 1 year low of $299.42 and a 1 year high of $481.35.

Hubbell (NYSE:HUBB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.73 by ($0.23). The business had revenue of $1.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.39 billion. Hubbell had a return on equity of 27.68% and a net margin of 14.29%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.60 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Hubbell Inc will post 17.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Hubbell Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 29th will be issued a dividend of $1.32 per share. This represents a $5.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.19%. Hubbell's dividend payout ratio is presently 35.72%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on HUBB. Wall Street Zen downgraded Hubbell from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Barclays increased their price objective on Hubbell from $414.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $420.00 price objective on Hubbell and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Hubbell from $352.00 to $417.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hubbell currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $456.25.

About Hubbell

Hubbell Incorporated, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and sells electrical and utility solutions in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments, Electrical Solutions and Utility Solutions. The Electrical Solution segment offers standard and special application wiring device products, rough-in electrical products, connector and grounding products, lighting fixtures, and other electrical equipment for use in industrial, commercial, and institutional facilities by electrical contractors, maintenance personnel, electricians, utilities, and telecommunications companies, as well as components and assemblies.