Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp Acquires 67,558 Shares of Xylem Inc. $XYL

Key Points

• Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp increased its Xylem stake by 260.4% in the fourth quarter, adding 67,558 shares and bringing its total holdings to 93,506 shares valued at about $12.7 million.
• Analyst sentiment remains moderately positive, with seven Buy ratings and six Hold ratings on Xylem; the consensus target price is $152.77, even as several firms trimmed their price targets.
• Xylem reported solid results and shareholder returns, beating quarterly EPS and revenue estimates, while also announcing a $0.43 quarterly dividend and a $1.5 billion share buyback authorization.

Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp grew its holdings in Xylem Inc. (NYSE:XYL - Free Report) by 260.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 93,506 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 67,558 shares during the quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp's holdings in Xylem were worth $12,734,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Knuff & Co LLC bought a new stake in Xylem in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Wexford Capital LP bought a new stake in Xylem in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Ramirez Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Xylem by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Ramirez Asset Management Inc. now owns 200 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Board of the Pension Protection Fund bought a new stake in Xylem in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Entrust Financial LLC bought a new stake in Xylem in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $45,000. 87.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on XYL. Barclays cut their target price on Xylem from $156.00 to $154.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. TD Cowen reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Xylem in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Citigroup reduced their price target on Xylem from $174.00 to $168.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $158.00 price target on Xylem in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Xylem from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Xylem presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $152.77.

Insider Activity at Xylem

In other Xylem news, Director Jerome A. Peribere bought 1,210 shares of Xylem stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 4th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $116.61 per share, for a total transaction of $141,098.10. Following the purchase, the director owned 27,209 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,172,841.49. The trade was a 4.65% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Geri-Michelle Mcshane sold 4,269 shares of Xylem stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.46, for a total value of $501,436.74. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 3,605 shares of the company's stock, valued at $423,443.30. This represents a 54.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 0.32% of the company's stock.

Xylem Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE XYL opened at $108.38 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. Xylem Inc. has a 12 month low of $105.29 and a 12 month high of $154.27. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $117.60 and a 200-day moving average of $129.31. The company has a market capitalization of $25.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.96, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.05.

Xylem (NYSE:XYL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The industrial products company reported $1.12 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.03. Xylem had a return on equity of 11.26% and a net margin of 10.79%.The company had revenue of $2.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.11 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.03 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Xylem has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.350-5.600 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Xylem Inc. will post 5.51 EPS for the current year.

Xylem Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 25th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 28th. Xylem's payout ratio is currently 42.79%.

Xylem announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, February 25th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the industrial products company to purchase up to 4.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

About Xylem

Xylem Inc NYSE: XYL is a global water technology company that designs, manufactures and services engineered systems and equipment for the transport, treatment, testing and efficient use of water. Its product portfolio spans pumps and pumping systems, valves, filtration and disinfection equipment, sensors and analytical instruments, and digital solutions for monitoring and control of water infrastructure. Xylem serves the full water cycle with offerings for water and wastewater utilities, industrial customers, commercial and residential buildings, and agricultural applications.

The company was established as an independent publicly traded company in 2011 following a corporate spin-off from ITT Corporation and is headquartered in Rye Brook, New York.

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