Ituran Location and Control Ltd. $ITRN Shares Sold by Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc.

Key Points

• Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. reduced its position in Ituran by 20.7% in Q4, selling 47,672 shares and now holding 182,636 shares worth about $7.86 million (roughly 0.7% of its portfolio and the firm's 27th-largest holding).
• Ituran increased its quarterly dividend from $0.50 to $1.50 (annualized $6.00), yielding about 10.9%, though the dividend payout ratio is very high at ~206%.
• Analyst sentiment is positive overall with a consensus Buy rating and a $60.67 average target; recent notes include Barclays raising its target to $55, Maxim initiating coverage at $70, and Wall Street Zen moving to "strong-buy".

Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. lowered its position in shares of Ituran Location and Control Ltd. (NASDAQ:ITRN - Free Report) by 20.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 182,636 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 47,672 shares during the quarter. Ituran Location and Control comprises about 0.7% of Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest position. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc.'s holdings in Ituran Location and Control were worth $7,855,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Four Tree Island Advisory LLC raised its stake in shares of Ituran Location and Control by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Four Tree Island Advisory LLC now owns 60,806 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,615,000 after purchasing an additional 330 shares during the last quarter. Vest Financial LLC purchased a new position in Ituran Location and Control during the 4th quarter worth approximately $291,000. R Squared Ltd raised its position in Ituran Location and Control by 87.1% during the 4th quarter. R Squared Ltd now owns 19,762 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $850,000 after buying an additional 9,202 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its position in Ituran Location and Control by 21.2% during the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 7,902 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $340,000 after purchasing an additional 1,381 shares during the period. Finally, J.M. Arbour LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ituran Location and Control in the 4th quarter valued at about $881,000. 94.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on ITRN shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Ituran Location and Control from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Sunday, April 12th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Ituran Location and Control from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Maxim Group began coverage on shares of Ituran Location and Control in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. They set a "buy" rating and a $70.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Ituran Location and Control in a report on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Loop Capital set a $57.00 price objective on Ituran Location and Control in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ituran Location and Control presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $60.67.

Ituran Location and Control Trading Down 3.3%

Shares of NASDAQ ITRN opened at $55.00 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $1.09 billion, a PE ratio of 18.90 and a beta of 0.66. Ituran Location and Control Ltd. has a 12-month low of $32.71 and a 12-month high of $58.40. The company has a 50-day moving average of $51.19 and a 200 day moving average of $45.06.

Ituran Location and Control (NASDAQ:ITRN - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Saturday, February 14th. The industrial products company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter. The business had revenue of $93.50 million for the quarter. Ituran Location and Control had a return on equity of 27.27% and a net margin of 16.15%.

Ituran Location and Control Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 30th were paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 10.9%. This is an increase from Ituran Location and Control's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 30th. Ituran Location and Control's dividend payout ratio is presently 206.19%.

Ituran Location and Control Profile

Ituran Location and Control Ltd. is a provider of wireless vehicle tracking and stolen vehicle recovery services. The company leverages a combination of cellular and global positioning system (GPS) technologies to offer real-time monitoring and location-based solutions for private vehicle owners, fleet operators and insurance companies. Its core offerings include subscription-based tracking devices, centralized control centers and software platforms that enable clients to detect unauthorized vehicle use, dispatch recovery teams and manage fleet logistics.

Founded in 1994 in Israel, Ituran pioneered the use of wireless communications for security and telematics applications.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding ITRN? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Ituran Location and Control Ltd. (NASDAQ:ITRN - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.