Uniplan Investment Counsel Inc. Has $6.23 Million Stock Holdings in AZZ Inc. $AZZ

Key Points

• Uniplan Investment Counsel Inc. increased its stake in AZZ Inc. by 7.2% during Q1, owning approximately 0.25% of the company, valued at $6.23 million.
• Several large investors, including Signaturefd LLC and Caitong International Asset Management, significantly increased their positions in AZZ, demonstrating growing institutional interest.
• AZZ Inc. reported earnings that beat expectations, with $1.78 per share, while also announcing a dividend increase from $0.17 to $0.20 per quarter.

Uniplan Investment Counsel Inc. grew its stake in shares of AZZ Inc. (NYSE:AZZ - Free Report) by 7.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 74,545 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,979 shares during the quarter. Uniplan Investment Counsel Inc. owned about 0.25% of AZZ worth $6,233,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in AZZ. Signaturefd LLC grew its stake in shares of AZZ by 110.0% in the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 399 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 209 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its stake in AZZ by 1,121.3% in the first quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 977 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $82,000 after acquiring an additional 897 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 639 shares during the period. CWM LLC increased its stake 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 worth $116,000 after purchasing an additional 684 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Widmann Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of AZZ in the 1st quarter valued at about $204,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.93% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded 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 research report on Saturday, July 12th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on AZZ from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, August 15th. Zacks Research cut AZZ from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of AZZ from $90.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, AZZ has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $112.29.

AZZ Stock Performance

AZZ opened at $116.90 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 1.51 and a quick ratio of 1.10. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $109.48 and a 200 day simple moving average of $95.58. AZZ Inc. has a 1 year low of $70.90 and a 1 year high of $118.72. The company has a market capitalization of $3.51 billion, a PE ratio of 13.55 and a beta of 1.30.

AZZ (NYSE:AZZ - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 9th. The industrial products company reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $421.96 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $435.91 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.46 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. AZZ has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.750-6.250 EPS. Research analysts expect that AZZ Inc. will post 5.13 EPS for the current year.

AZZ Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 10th were given a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 10th. This is a positive change from AZZ's previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. AZZ's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.27%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Bryan Lee Stovall sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.60, for a total value 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 trade represents a 18.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Kurt L. Russell sold 10,321 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.21, for a total value of $1,158,119.41. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 16,804 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,885,576.84. This trade represents a 38.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 46,837 shares of company stock valued at $5,195,318 over the last 90 days. 1.77% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

AZZ 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.

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