Sit Investment Associates Inc. Raises Stock Position in Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor $ZWS

Key Points

• Sit Investment Associates Inc. increased its holdings in Zurn Elkay Water Solutions by 34.1% in the first quarter, owning approximately $1.01 million worth of shares by the end of the period.
• Zurn Elkay Water Solutions reported $0.42 earnings per share for the last quarter, surpassing the consensus estimate of $0.36, with a 7.9% year-over-year revenue increase to $444.50 million.
• The company has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.09 per share, with an annualized yield of 0.8%, and a payout ratio of 35.64%.

Sit Investment Associates Inc. boosted its stake in Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor (NYSE:ZWS - Free Report) by 34.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 30,575 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 7,775 shares during the quarter. Sit Investment Associates Inc.'s holdings in Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor were worth $1,008,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. HM Payson & Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor during the 1st quarter valued at about $37,000. Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor by 3,687.2% during the first quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,780 shares of the company's stock valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 1,733 shares in the last quarter. Archer Investment Corp purchased a new stake in Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor during the first quarter valued at approximately $99,000. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division lifted its position in Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor by 31.0% during the first quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 4,400 shares of the company's stock valued at $145,000 after acquiring an additional 1,040 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capstone Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $221,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.33% of the company's stock.

Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor Stock Performance

ZWS stock traded down $0.2750 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $44.8950. 364,677 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 997,743. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $39.21 and its 200-day simple moving average is $36.03. Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor has a 1-year low of $27.74 and a 1-year high of $45.90. The firm has a market cap of $7.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.47, a PEG ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 2.71 and a quick ratio of 1.72.

Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor (NYSE:ZWS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.06. Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor had a net margin of 10.78% and a return on equity of 15.23%. The business had revenue of $444.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $424.55 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.33 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor will post 1.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th will be paid a $0.09 dividend. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 20th. Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.64%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Sudhanshu Chhabra sold 108,930 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.61, for a total value of $4,750,437.30. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 94,330 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,113,731.30. This trade represents a 53.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Timothy J. Jahnke sold 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.73, for a total transaction of $874,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 180,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,871,400. This represents a 10.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 148,930 shares of company stock worth $6,501,529. Insiders own 2.60% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor from $42.00 to $39.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Mizuho set a $36.00 target price on shares of Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor from $43.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $38.00.

Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor Profile

Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Corporation engages in design, procurement, manufacture, and marketing of water management solutions in the United States, Canada, and internationally. It offers water safety and control products, such as backflow preventers, fire system valves, pressure reducing valves, thermostatic mixing valves, PEX pipings, fittings, and installation tools under the Zurn and Wilkins brand names.