Norges Bank Acquires New Position in Itron, Inc. $ITRI

Key Points

• Norges Bank opened a new position in Itron during the fourth quarter, buying 689,097 shares worth about $64 million and ending with roughly 1.5% ownership of the company.
• Wall Street sentiment remains constructive: analysts have a consensus Moderate Buy rating on Itron, with an average price target of $131.22.
• Itron recently beat earnings expectations, reporting $1.49 EPS versus the $1.26 consensus and revenue of $586.98 million, though shares were trading near $80.07 and below their 200-day average.

Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 689,097 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock, valued at approximately $63,990,000. Norges Bank owned approximately 1.50% of Itron at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Itron by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,875,153 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $731,809,000 after buying an additional 132,329 shares in the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc lifted its holdings in Itron by 127.3% during the 3rd quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 1,588,950 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $197,153,000 after buying an additional 890,040 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Itron by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,144,982 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $106,340,000 after buying an additional 6,598 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Itron by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,076,274 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $134,058,000 after buying an additional 16,261 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its holdings in shares of Itron by 6.0% in the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 999,882 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $124,545,000 after purchasing an additional 56,318 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.19% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on ITRI shares. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $130.00 price target on shares of Itron in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Guggenheim set a $155.00 price target on shares of Itron in a report on Friday, February 13th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Itron from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Itron from $133.00 to $113.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Itron from $133.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $131.22.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Itron news, CFO Joan S. Hooper sold 442 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.37, for a total transaction of $37,291.54. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 117,478 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,911,618.86. The trade was a 0.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, SVP John F. Marcolini sold 322 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.37, for a total transaction of $27,167.14. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 24,689 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,083,010.93. This represents a 1.29% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 3,946 shares of company stock valued at $324,420. Insiders own 1.77% of the company's stock.

Itron Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of Itron stock opened at $80.07 on Friday. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $86.67 and its 200-day moving average price is $93.06. The company has a quick ratio of 2.24, a current ratio of 2.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. Itron, Inc. has a 52-week low of $77.77 and a 52-week high of $142.00. The company has a market cap of $3.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.77, a PEG ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 1.33.

Itron (NASDAQ:ITRI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.23. Itron had a net margin of 12.31% and a return on equity of 19.54%. The firm had revenue of $586.98 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $572.04 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.52 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was down 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Itron has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 1.250-1.350 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Itron, Inc. will post 6.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Itron Company Profile

Itron, Inc NASDAQ: ITRI is a global technology company that develops innovative solutions to measure, manage and analyze the use of energy and water. Its comprehensive portfolio includes smart meters, data collection devices, communication networks and advanced software applications designed to optimize utility operations and foster sustainable resource management. The company's offerings enable utilities and cities to accurately monitor consumption patterns, streamline billing processes and improve grid reliability.

Itron's product lineup spans a range of hardware and software solutions, from residential and commercial smart meters to meter data management systems (MDMS), networked communication platforms and analytics tools.

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