Powell Industries, Inc. $POWL Shares Sold by Hodges Capital Management Inc.

Key Points

• Hodges Capital Management cut its Powell Industries stake by 21.2% in the first quarter, selling 10,990 shares and leaving it with 40,793 shares worth about $22.1 million.
• Several analysts remain positive on the stock, with an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $236.67, though recent opinions have been mixed.
• Insider selling has been notable: major shareholder Thomas W. Powell and CEO Brett Alan Cope both sold shares, and insiders have sold a total of 55,088 shares over the past 90 days.

Hodges Capital Management Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Powell Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:POWL - Free Report) by 21.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 40,793 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 10,990 shares during the quarter. Powell Industries comprises 1.8% of Hodges Capital Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding. Hodges Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 0.11% of Powell Industries worth $22,072,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital World Investors acquired a new position in Powell Industries in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $20,704,000. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Powell Industries during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $3,098,000. Voss Capital LP grew its holdings in shares of Powell Industries by 59.6% during the 3rd quarter. Voss Capital LP now owns 295,000 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $89,919,000 after purchasing an additional 110,140 shares in the last quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D bought a new stake in shares of Powell Industries during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,137,000. Finally, Rock Creek Group LP raised its stake in shares of Powell Industries by 1,900.0% in the fourth quarter. Rock Creek Group LP now owns 150,000 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $47,817,000 after purchasing an additional 142,500 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.77% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

POWL has been the subject of several research reports. Texas Capital raised Powell Industries to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Powell Industries from $310.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price objective on shares of Powell Industries from $160.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Powell Industries from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Powell Industries from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $236.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Powell Industries

In related news, major shareholder Thomas W. Powell sold 33,958 shares of Powell Industries stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $294.49, for a total transaction of $10,000,291.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 564,736 shares of the company's stock, valued at $166,309,104.64. This trade represents a 5.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Brett Alan Cope sold 4,440 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $301.00, for a total transaction of $1,336,440.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 490,113 shares in the company, valued at approximately $147,524,013. This trade represents a 0.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 55,088 shares of company stock worth $16,036,366 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Powell Industries Price Performance

Powell Industries stock opened at $246.33 on Monday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $285.62 and a 200 day simple moving average of $207.96. The company has a market capitalization of $8.97 billion, a PE ratio of 48.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 1.13. Powell Industries, Inc. has a one year low of $68.33 and a one year 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 analysts' consensus estimates of $1.34 by ($0.09). Powell Industries had a net margin of 16.51% and a return on equity of 28.61%. The company had revenue of $296.62 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $298.12 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.81 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Powell Industries, Inc. will post 5.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Powell Industries Cuts Dividend

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

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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