MUFG Securities EMEA plc Takes $7.06 Million Position in Zebra Technologies Corporation (NASDAQ:ZBRA)

Key Points

• MUFG Securities EMEA plc purchased 24,999 shares of Zebra Technologies, valued at approximately $7,064,000, marking a new investment in the company.
• Analysts are optimistic about Zebra Technologies, with firms like Citigroup and BNP Paribas raising their target prices and ratings, leading to a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a target price of $357.44.
• Zebra Technologies reported $3.61 earnings per share, beating expectations, and announced a stock buyback plan worth $250 million, indicating confidence in its share value.

MUFG Securities EMEA plc purchased a new stake in shares of Zebra Technologies Corporation (NASDAQ:ZBRA - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 24,999 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $7,064,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ZBRA. FMR LLC lifted its position in Zebra Technologies by 181.1% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 775,685 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $299,585,000 after acquiring an additional 499,736 shares during the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC bought a new position in Zebra Technologies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $107,254,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Zebra Technologies by 27.5% in the first quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,183,710 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $334,469,000 after acquiring an additional 255,193 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Zebra Technologies by 5,704.9% in the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 259,363 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $73,286,000 after acquiring an additional 254,895 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Zebra Technologies by 20,849.2% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 255,999 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $72,335,000 after acquiring an additional 254,777 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.03% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on ZBRA shares. BNP Paribas Exane raised shares of Zebra Technologies from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $408.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Zebra Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Needham & Company LLC boosted their target price on shares of Zebra Technologies from $325.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Zebra Technologies from $320.00 to $367.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Zebra Technologies from $269.00 to $319.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $357.44.

Zebra Technologies Trading Up 2.0%

ZBRA stock traded up $6.65 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $334.79. The stock had a trading volume of 223,300 shares, compared to its average volume of 595,633. The firm has a market cap of $17.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.60 and a beta of 1.75. The company has a current ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. Zebra Technologies Corporation has a 1-year low of $205.73 and a 1-year high of $427.76. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $314.35 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $298.55.

Zebra Technologies (NASDAQ:ZBRA - Get Free Report) last released 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 business had revenue of $1.29 billion for 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%. Zebra Technologies's revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.18 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Zebra Technologies Corporation will post 13.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Zebra Technologies declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, August 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $250.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the industrial products company to reacquire up to 1.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Zebra Technologies Company Profile

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.