AQR Capital Management LLC Buys 159,781 Shares of Zebra Technologies Corporation $ZBRA

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management LLC significantly increased its stake in Zebra Technologies Corporation by 381.6%, acquiring 201,652 shares worth approximately $55.89 million.
• Zebra Technologies reported earnings of $3.61 per share, exceeding analysts' expectations, and announced a share repurchase plan allowing up to $250 million in stock buybacks.
• Analysts maintain a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for Zebra Technologies, with an average price target of $357.44, reflecting positive outlooks from several major firms.

AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Zebra Technologies Corporation (NASDAQ:ZBRA - Free Report) by 381.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 201,652 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 159,781 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned 0.39% of Zebra Technologies worth $55,892,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Algert Global LLC purchased a new stake in Zebra Technologies during the 4th quarter worth about $456,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Zebra Technologies by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 651 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $251,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its position in shares of Zebra Technologies by 8.7% in the fourth quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 4,542 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,754,000 after acquiring an additional 364 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its stake in Zebra Technologies by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 7,752 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,994,000 after acquiring an additional 189 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG increased its holdings in Zebra Technologies by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 225,505 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $87,095,000 after acquiring an additional 9,251 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 91.03% of the company's stock.

Zebra Technologies Stock Performance

Zebra Technologies stock traded down $3.36 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $312.65. 516,923 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 452,336. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.52 and a beta of 1.78. Zebra Technologies Corporation has a 12 month low of $205.73 and a 12 month high of $427.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.46 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The business has a 50 day moving average of $321.40 and a two-hundred day moving average of $292.65.

Zebra Technologies (NASDAQ:ZBRA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $3.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.31 by $0.30. The company had revenue of $1.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.29 billion. Zebra Technologies had a net margin of 10.56% and a return on equity of 18.95%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.18 earnings per share. Zebra Technologies has set its FY 2025 guidance at 15.250-15.750 EPS. Q3 2025 guidance at 3.600-3.800 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Zebra Technologies Corporation will post 13.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Zebra Technologies announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, August 5th that permits the company to repurchase $250.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the industrial products company to repurchase up to 1.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on ZBRA. Needham & Company LLC lifted their target price on shares of Zebra Technologies from $325.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. BNP Paribas raised shares of Zebra Technologies from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $342.00 price objective (up from $280.00) on shares of Zebra Technologies in a research report on Monday, July 14th. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded shares of Zebra Technologies from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $408.00 price objective for the company in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Zebra Technologies from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $357.44.

About Zebra Technologies

Zebra Technologies Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides enterprise asset intelligence solutions in the automatic identification and data capture solutions industry worldwide. It operates in two segments, Asset Intelligence & Tracking, and Enterprise Visibility & Mobility. The company designs, manufactures, and sells printers that produce labels, wristbands, tickets, receipts, and plastic cards; dye-sublimination thermal card printers that produce images, which are used for personal identification, access control, and financial transactions; radio frequency identification device (RFID) printers that encode data into passive RFID transponders; accessories and options for printers, including carrying cases, vehicle mounts, and battery chargers; stock and customized thermal labels, receipts, ribbons, plastic cards, and RFID tags for printers; and temperature-monitoring labels primarily used in vaccine distribution.