ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. Buys 6,010 Shares of Generac Holdings Inc. $GNRC

Key Points

• ZWJ Investment Counsel increased its Generac stake by 28.1% in the third quarter, purchasing 6,010 shares to own 27,435 shares valued at approximately $5.68 million. Institutional investors collectively hold 84.04% of Generac’s stock.
• Generac reported quarterly EPS of $2.91, exceeding analysts’ $2.01 estimate, while revenue rose 10.3% year over year to $1.17 billion, slightly below expectations.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive view, with Generac receiving a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $290.55, compared with a recent share price of $197.93.

ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Generac Holdings Inc. (NYSE:GNRC - Free Report) by 28.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 27,435 shares of the technology company's stock after purchasing an additional 6,010 shares during the period. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in Generac were worth $5,678,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Root Financial Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Generac by 32.9% in the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 218 shares of the technology company's stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Generac by 1.5% during the third quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,027 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $833,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Essential Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Generac by 57.0% in the first quarter. Essential Partners LLC now owns 168 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Oarsman Capital Inc. lifted its position in shares of Generac by 4.3% in the second quarter. Oarsman Capital Inc. now owns 1,492 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $437,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System lifted its position in shares of Generac by 0.4% in the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 16,190 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $4,741,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.04% of the company's stock.

Generac Price Performance

Shares of GNRC stock opened at $197.93 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 2.04 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The company has a market capitalization of $11.68 billion, a PE ratio of 45.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.91. The firm's 50-day moving average is $203.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $227.04. Generac Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $134.80 and a 12 month high of $296.44.

Generac (NYSE:GNRC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The technology company reported $2.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.90. The business had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.18 billion. Generac had a net margin of 5.82% and a return on equity of 17.83%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.65 EPS. Analysts predict that Generac Holdings Inc. will post 9.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GNRC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. DA Davidson set a $333.00 price target on Generac in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Generac in a research note on Thursday, September 17th. Roth Capital increased their price objective on Generac from $214.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their price objective on Generac from $333.00 to $297.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $280.00 price objective on Generac in a report on Thursday, September 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Generac has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $290.55.

Insider Activity at Generac

In other Generac news, insider Norman P. Taffe sold 550 shares of Generac stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $218.83, for a total value of $120,356.50. Following the sale, the insider owned 15,508 shares in the company, valued at $3,393,615.64. The trade was a 3.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Aaron Jagdfeld sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.89, for a total value of $974,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 554,528 shares in the company, valued at approximately $108,071,961.92. This trade represents a 0.89% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 18,442 shares of company stock worth $3,656,537. Insiders own 2.40% of the company's stock.

About Generac

Generac Holdings Inc is an energy technology company that designs and manufactures power generation equipment, energy storage systems and other products intended to provide backup and distributed energy solutions. Its offerings serve residential, commercial, industrial and other users seeking standby power, portable power or greater control over energy use.

The company's product portfolio includes home standby generators, portable generators, commercial and industrial generators, mobile power equipment, engines and related transfer switches and controls.

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