Powell Industries, Inc. $POWL Shares Purchased by Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.

Key Points

• Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management dramatically boosted its stake in Powell Industries, buying 775,097 additional shares in Q4 and ending with 775,160 shares worth about $247.1 million.
• Powell Industries reported quarterly earnings of $1.25 per share, which missed analyst expectations, while revenue came in at $296.6 million, slightly below estimates but still up 6.5% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.09 per share, and analysts currently rate the stock a “Moderate Buy” with a consensus price target of $236.67, though the shares recently traded well above that level.

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its position in Powell Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:POWL - Free Report) by 1,230,312.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 775,160 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 775,097 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. owned 6.39% of Powell Industries worth $247,106,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Powell Industries by 42.2% in the 3rd quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 2,314,474 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $705,475,000 after acquiring an additional 686,588 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Powell Industries by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 706,642 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $225,263,000 after acquiring an additional 6,419 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Powell Industries by 65.8% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 615,067 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $187,479,000 after acquiring an additional 244,051 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Powell Industries by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 352,103 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $74,100,000 after acquiring an additional 3,159 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of Powell Industries by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 348,091 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $106,102,000 after acquiring an additional 8,083 shares during the period. 89.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Powell Industries Stock Performance

Shares of POWL opened at $292.65 on Friday. The business's 50-day moving average is $222.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $165.60. The company has a market capitalization of $10.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.27, a P/E/G ratio of 3.82 and a beta of 1.14. Powell Industries, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $54.75 and a fifty-two week high of $328.00.

Powell Industries (NASDAQ:POWL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The industrial products company reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.34 by ($0.09). Powell Industries had a return on equity of 28.61% and a net margin of 16.51%.The company had revenue of $296.62 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $298.12 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.81 earnings per share. Powell Industries's revenue for the quarter was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Powell Industries, Inc. will post 5.47 EPS for the current year.

Powell Industries Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.09 per share. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 20th. Powell Industries's dividend payout ratio is presently 7.05%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Powell Industries

In other news, major shareholder Thomas W. Powell sold 149,334 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.41, for a total transaction of $25,000,004.94. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 1,796,082 shares of the company's stock, valued at $300,682,087.62. This represents a 7.68% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP William Marshall Mauney, Jr. sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $323.69, for a total transaction of $809,225.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 10,853 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,513,007.57. The trade was a 18.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 183,835 shares of company stock worth $32,915,210. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

POWL has been the topic of several research reports. Glj Research initiated coverage on Powell Industries in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $150.00 target price on the stock. Zacks Research downgraded Powell Industries from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Powell Industries from $310.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price target on Powell Industries from $160.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Powell Industries from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $236.67.

Powell Industries Company Profile

Powell Industries, Inc is an industrial electrical engineering company specializing in the design, manufacture and integration of customized power control and distribution solutions. The firm's offerings range from medium‐voltage switchgear and power control centers to bus duct, motor control centers and specialty transformers. Powell also provides automation systems, protective relaying, metering, supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) platforms, and turnkey engineering services to help clients manage critical power infrastructure.

Serving the oil and gas, petrochemical, refining, utility, mining and industrial sectors, Powell's products are engineered to meet demanding performance, safety and reliability requirements.

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