Driehaus Capital Management LLC Grows Position in Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI)

Driehaus Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI - Free Report) by 2.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 342,427 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after buying an additional 9,107 shares during the period. Driehaus Capital Management LLC owned about 0.76% of Itron worth $37,181,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ITRI. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System lifted its stake in Itron by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 21,800 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $2,367,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Itron by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC now owns 2,185 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $237,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Itron by 25.5% during the fourth quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 616 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $67,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors grew its holdings in shares of Itron by 6.3% during the fourth quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 2,144 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $233,000 after buying an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Summit Investment Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Itron by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 4,726 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $513,000 after buying an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. 96.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Itron Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ITRI traded up $0.51 during trading on Friday, hitting $108.38. 307,833 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 568,369. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $104.39 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $107.65. The company has a market cap of $4.94 billion, a PE ratio of 22.21, a P/E/G ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a current ratio of 3.36, a quick ratio of 2.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. Itron, Inc. has a 12-month low of $90.11 and a 12-month high of $124.90.

Itron (NASDAQ:ITRI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.52 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.30 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $607.15 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $608.86 million. Itron had a return on equity of 19.03% and a net margin of 9.37%. The company's quarterly revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.24 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Itron, Inc. will post 5.33 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on ITRI shares. Oppenheimer raised their price target on Itron from $124.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and set a $133.00 price target on shares of Itron in a report on Thursday, April 17th. StockNews.com lowered Itron from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, March 1st. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price target on Itron from $130.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Itron from $124.00 to $121.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 5th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Itron presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $127.36.

Insider Transactions at Itron

In related news, CAO David Marshall Wright sold 317 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.90, for a total transaction of $29,449.30. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 8,108 shares of the company's stock, valued at $753,233.20. This trade represents a 3.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Christopher E. Ware sold 648 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.90, for a total value of $60,199.20. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 20,326 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,888,285.40. The trade was a 3.09% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 9,187 shares of company stock valued at $945,620 in the last quarter. 1.45% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Itron

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.