Hubbell Incorporated (NYSE:HUBB) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Hold" from Analysts

Hubbell Incorporated (NYSE:HUBB - Get Free Report) has earned a consensus recommendation of "Hold" from the eight ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $457.50.

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on HUBB. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Hubbell from $352.00 to $417.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Hubbell from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Hubbell from $422.00 to $400.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th.

Hubbell Stock Performance

Shares of HUBB traded down $6.81 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $390.13. 1,127,934 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 542,404. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.64. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $357.11 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $392.98. Hubbell has a 1 year low of $299.43 and a 1 year high of $481.35. The stock has a market cap of $20.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.97.

Hubbell (NYSE:HUBB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.73 by ($0.23). The company had revenue of $1.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.39 billion. Hubbell had a net margin of 13.82% and a return on equity of 28.62%. The business's revenue was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.60 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Hubbell will post 17.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Hubbell declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the industrial products company to purchase up to 2.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Hubbell Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be issued a $1.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. This represents a $5.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.35%. Hubbell's dividend payout ratio is currently 35.72%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hubbell news, CEO Gerben Bakker sold 7,723 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $384.63, for a total transaction of $2,970,497.49. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 82,101 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $31,578,507.63. This trade represents a 8.60% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Carlos M. Cardoso sold 400 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $386.29, for a total transaction of $154,516.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 1,727 shares in the company, valued at $667,122.83. The trade was a 18.81% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.76% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hubbell

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in HUBB. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hubbell during the 1st quarter worth approximately $213,283,000. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. grew its stake in shares of Hubbell by 181.6% during the 1st quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 975,196 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $322,702,000 after purchasing an additional 628,886 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Hubbell during the 4th quarter worth approximately $195,218,000. Deutsche Bank AG grew its stake in shares of Hubbell by 35.1% during the 1st quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 1,104,085 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $365,353,000 after purchasing an additional 287,047 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP grew its stake in shares of Hubbell by 418.1% during the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 307,050 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $128,620,000 after purchasing an additional 247,786 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.16% of the company's stock.

Hubbell Company Profile

Hubbell Incorporated, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and sells electrical and utility solutions in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments, Electrical Solutions and Utility Solutions. The Electrical Solution segment offers standard and special application wiring device products, rough-in electrical products, connector and grounding products, lighting fixtures, and other electrical equipment for use in industrial, commercial, and institutional facilities by electrical contractors, maintenance personnel, electricians, utilities, and telecommunications companies, as well as components and assemblies.