Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI) Receives Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI) has received an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from analysts, with eleven out of twelve recommending a buy.
• The company's reported earnings per share of $1.62 exceeded expectations by $0.29, but revenue was slightly below forecasts at $606.76 million.
• Insiders sold a total of 15,755 shares valued at approximately $1.88 million in the last 90 days, indicating some insider selling activity.

Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI - Get Free Report) has earned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twelve research firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $136.25.

ITRI has been the subject of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Itron from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $128.00 to $145.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Itron from $139.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 20th. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on Itron from $124.00 to $121.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Itron from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Finally, Johnson Rice cut Itron from a "buy" rating to an "accumulate" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st.

Itron Trading Down 0.6%

NASDAQ ITRI traded down $0.71 during trading on Friday, hitting $124.78. The stock had a trading volume of 33,952 shares, compared to its average volume of 595,141. The company has a market capitalization of $5.70 billion, a PE ratio of 21.33, a PEG ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $129.56 and a 200 day moving average price of $113.90. Itron has a twelve month low of $90.11 and a twelve month high of $140.04.

Itron (NASDAQ:ITRI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.29. The company had revenue of $606.76 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $610.36 million. Itron had a return on equity of 19.69% and a net margin of 11.05%. Itron's revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.21 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Itron will post 5.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Joan S. Hooper sold 938 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.95, for a total transaction of $107,823.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 89,364 shares in the company, valued at $10,272,391.80. The trade was a 1.04% 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. Also, SVP Christopher E. Ware sold 339 shares of Itron stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.95, for a total value of $38,968.05. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 19,468 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,237,846.60. This trade represents a 1.71% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 15,755 shares of company stock valued at $1,879,397 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.51% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ITRI. Impax Asset Management Group plc acquired a new position in Itron during the second quarter worth approximately $91,998,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its position in Itron by 129.7% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 732,274 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $76,713,000 after buying an additional 413,487 shares during the period. Raiffeisen Bank International AG acquired a new position in shares of Itron in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,619,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of Itron by 180.7% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 333,363 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $36,197,000 after purchasing an additional 214,600 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi increased its holdings in shares of Itron by 18.4% in the first quarter. Amundi now owns 929,407 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $97,313,000 after purchasing an additional 144,361 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.19% of the company's stock.

Itron Company Profile

Itron, Inc, a technology, solutions, and service company, provides end-to-end solutions that help manage energy, water, and smart city operations worldwide. It operates in three segments: Device Solutions, Networked Solutions, and Outcomes. The Device Solutions segment offers hardware products that are used for measurement, control, or sensing, such as standard gas, electricity, water, and communicating meters, as well as heat and allocation products.