Ameriprise Financial Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in AZZ Inc. $AZZ

Key Points

• Ameriprise Financial Inc. has reduced its holdings in AZZ Inc. by 6.2% during the 1st quarter, now owning 1.48% of the company worth approximately $37 million.
• Multiple hedge funds have increased their stakes in AZZ, with Wellington Management Group boosting its position by 19.2% and Bank of America raising holdings by an impressive 554.6%.
• AZZ recently declared a quarterly dividend increase from $0.17 to $0.20 per share, showing a positive shift with a current yield of 0.7%.

Ameriprise Financial Inc. lessened its position in AZZ Inc. (NYSE:AZZ - Free Report) by 6.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 442,530 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 29,116 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. owned 1.48% of AZZ worth $37,000,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Signaturefd LLC grew its holdings in AZZ by 110.0% in the 1st quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 399 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 209 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its stake in shares of AZZ by 1,121.3% during the 1st quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 977 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $82,000 after purchasing an additional 897 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of AZZ by 140.1% during the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,095 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $92,000 after purchasing an additional 639 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its stake in shares of AZZ by 35.6% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,298 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $106,000 after purchasing an additional 341 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC boosted its stake in shares of AZZ by 97.0% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,389 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $116,000 after purchasing an additional 684 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.93% of the company's stock.

AZZ Stock Down 0.4%

AZZ stock traded down $0.50 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $111.90. The stock had a trading volume of 47,102 shares, compared to its average volume of 260,917. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $3.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.93 and a beta of 1.30. AZZ Inc. has a 12-month low of $70.90 and a 12-month high of $117.35. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $108.14 and its 200-day moving average price is $95.23.

AZZ (NYSE:AZZ - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 9th. The industrial products company reported $1.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $421.96 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $435.91 million. AZZ had a net margin of 16.40% and a return on equity of 15.54%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.46 earnings per share. AZZ has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.750-6.250 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that AZZ Inc. will post 5.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AZZ Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 10th were issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. This is a boost from AZZ's previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 10th. AZZ's dividend payout ratio is presently 9.27%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Thomas E. Ferguson sold 26,516 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.85, for a total transaction of $2,939,298.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 183,182 shares of the company's stock, valued at $20,305,724.70. The trade was a 12.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Kurt L. Russell sold 10,321 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.21, for a total transaction of $1,158,119.41. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 16,804 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,885,576.84. The trade was a 38.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 46,837 shares of company stock valued at $5,195,318. Insiders own 1.77% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AZZ has been the topic of a number of research reports. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of AZZ from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of AZZ from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 12th. Zacks Research lowered shares of AZZ from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Sidoti cut shares of AZZ from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $101.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Finally, Noble Financial reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of AZZ in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $112.29.

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.