Jacobs Solutions Inc. (NYSE:J) Position Boosted by Waters Parkerson & CO. LLC

Waters Parkerson & CO. LLC raised its stake in Jacobs Solutions Inc. (NYSE:J - Free Report) by 1.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 206,563 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 2,985 shares during the quarter. Jacobs Solutions makes up about 1.5% of Waters Parkerson & CO. LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest holding. Waters Parkerson & CO. LLC owned about 0.17% of Jacobs Solutions worth $27,601,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Colonial Trust Co SC raised its stake in shares of Jacobs Solutions by 10,250.0% during the fourth quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 207 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 205 shares in the last quarter. Avalon Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Jacobs Solutions during the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Jacobs Solutions by 71.9% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 275 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in Jacobs Solutions by 42.7% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 334 shares of the company's stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Optiver Holding B.V. grew its holdings in Jacobs Solutions by 113.8% during the fourth quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 357 shares of the company's stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares during the period. 85.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Jacobs Solutions Trading Down 0.8%

J traded down $0.98 during trading on Friday, reaching $125.83. The company had a trading volume of 510,846 shares, compared to its average volume of 802,213. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $121.43 and its 200 day simple moving average is $129.95. The company has a market cap of $15.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.94, a PEG ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.77. Jacobs Solutions Inc. has a 12-month low of $106.23 and a 12-month high of $156.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.25.

Jacobs Solutions (NYSE:J - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $2.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3 billion. Jacobs Solutions had a return on equity of 14.87% and a net margin of 4.28%. Jacobs Solutions's revenue was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.91 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Jacobs Solutions Inc. will post 6.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Jacobs Solutions declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, February 4th that allows the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Jacobs Solutions Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.02%. Jacobs Solutions's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.26%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Jacobs Solutions from $154.00 to $148.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Citigroup lowered their target price on Jacobs Solutions from $161.00 to $151.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 25th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Jacobs Solutions from $130.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Jacobs Solutions from $152.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on Jacobs Solutions from $154.00 to $152.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 9th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $150.86.

About Jacobs Solutions

Jacobs Solutions Inc provides consulting, technical, engineering, scientific, and project delivery services for the government and private sectors in the United States, Europe, Canada, India, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, the Middle East, and Africa. It operates through Critical Mission Solutions, People & Places Solutions, Divergent Solutions, and PA Consulting segments.