Raymond James Financial Inc. Reduces Position in AZZ Inc. $AZZ

Raymond James Financial Inc. lessened its position in shares of AZZ Inc. (NYSE:AZZ - Free Report) by 40.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 36,477 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 25,187 shares during the quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned 0.12% of AZZ worth $3,050,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AZZ. Signaturefd LLC increased its stake in AZZ by 110.0% during the 1st quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 399 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 209 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its position in AZZ by 1,121.3% during the 1st quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 977 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $82,000 after acquiring an additional 897 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its holdings in AZZ by 140.1% in the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,095 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $92,000 after purchasing an additional 639 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its position in shares of AZZ by 97.0% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,389 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $116,000 after acquiring an additional 684 shares during the period. Finally, Arkadios Wealth Advisors purchased a new position in AZZ during the 1st quarter valued at about $210,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.93% of the company's stock.

AZZ Trading Up 2.1%

NYSE AZZ traded up $2.40 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $116.03. 356,143 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 261,125. The firm has a market cap of $3.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.45 and a beta of 1.30. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $110.23 and its 200 day moving average price is $95.83. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. AZZ Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $70.90 and a fifty-two week high of $118.72.

AZZ (NYSE:AZZ - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 9th. The industrial products company reported $1.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.19. AZZ had a return on equity of 15.54% and a net margin of 16.40%.The business had revenue of $421.96 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $435.91 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.46 earnings per share. AZZ's quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. AZZ has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.750-6.250 EPS. Analysts predict that AZZ Inc. will post 5.13 EPS for the current year.

AZZ Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, July 10th were paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This is a boost from AZZ's previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 10th. AZZ's payout ratio is currently 9.27%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other AZZ news, COO Bryan Lee Stovall sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.60, for a total transaction of $558,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 22,709 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,534,324.40. This represents a 18.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Thomas E. Ferguson sold 26,516 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.85, for a total transaction of $2,939,298.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 183,182 shares in the company, valued at $20,305,724.70. This trade represents a 12.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 46,837 shares of company stock valued at $5,195,318. 1.77% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on AZZ. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of AZZ from $90.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Wells Fargo & Company raised AZZ to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 14th. Wall Street Zen raised AZZ from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 12th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of AZZ from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, August 18th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of AZZ from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, August 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $112.29.

AZZ Company Profile

AZZ Inc provides hot-dip galvanizing and coil coating solutions in North America. It offers metal finishing solutions for corrosion protection, including hot-dip galvanizing, spin galvanizing, powder coating, anodizing, and plating to steel fabrication and other industries, as well as to fabricators or manufacturers that provide services to the transmission and distribution, bridge and highway, petrochemical, and general industrial markets; and original equipment manufacturers.