Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI) Shares Acquired by Public Sector Pension Investment Board

Key Points

• The Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its stake in Itron, Inc. by 27.3%, holding 143,018 shares valued at approximately $14.98 million as of its latest SEC filing.
• Itron reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings with an EPS of $1.62, surpassing the consensus estimate of $1.33, while revenue was slightly below expectations.
• Brokerages have a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" on Itron shares, with a significant price target increase from various analysts, highlighting positive market sentiment.

Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its stake in Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI - Free Report) by 27.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 143,018 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after purchasing an additional 30,669 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board owned about 0.31% of Itron worth $14,983,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ITRI. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Itron by 9.8% in the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 35,076 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $3,809,000 after acquiring an additional 3,132 shares in the last quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Itron by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 4,726 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $513,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Mariner LLC lifted its position in shares of Itron by 6.3% during the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 3,448 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $374,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Itron during the 4th quarter worth $229,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in shares of Itron by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 169,398 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $18,393,000 after purchasing an additional 1,594 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.19% of the company's stock.

Itron Trading Down 2.4%

ITRI traded down $3.13 during trading on Thursday, hitting $125.37. The company's stock had a trading volume of 413,552 shares, compared to its average volume of 731,157. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 2.04 and a quick ratio of 1.75. The stock has a market cap of $5.73 billion, a PE ratio of 21.43, a PEG ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 1.35. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $130.14 and its 200-day moving average price is $114.34. Itron, Inc. has a twelve month low of $90.11 and a twelve month high of $140.04.

Itron (NASDAQ:ITRI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.29. The business had revenue of $606.76 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $610.36 million. Itron had a return on equity of 19.69% and a net margin of 11.05%. The company's revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.21 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Itron, Inc. will post 5.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ITRI has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Stephens set a $130.00 price objective on shares of Itron in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Roth Capital increased their target price on shares of Itron from $130.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Itron from $139.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Itron from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their target price for the company from $128.00 to $145.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Itron from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $136.25.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Itron news, SVP Justin K. Patrick sold 9,036 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.77, for a total transaction of $1,100,313.72. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 21,149 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,575,313.73. This trade represents a 29.94% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Christopher E. Ware sold 339 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.95, for a total value of $38,968.05. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 19,468 shares in the company, valued at $2,237,846.60. The trade was a 1.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 15,755 shares of company stock worth $1,879,397. 1.45% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Itron Company Profile

Itron, Inc, a technology, solutions, and service company, provides end-to-end solutions that help manage energy, water, and smart city operations worldwide. It operates in three segments: Device Solutions, Networked Solutions, and Outcomes. The Device Solutions segment offers hardware products that are used for measurement, control, or sensing, such as standard gas, electricity, water, and communicating meters, as well as heat and allocation products.