Itron (NASDAQ:ITRI) Reaches New 1-Year High - Here's What Happened

Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $136.06 and last traded at $135.25, with a volume of 9054 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $134.08.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ITRI has been the subject of several recent research reports. Piper Sandler cut their target price on shares of Itron from $124.00 to $121.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Itron from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, June 1st. Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $133.00 price target on shares of Itron in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Itron from $139.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 20th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $128.18.

Itron Trading Up 1.2%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.93 and a quick ratio of 1.65. The stock's 50-day moving average is $119.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $109.53. The stock has a market cap of $6.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.35.

Itron (NASDAQ:ITRI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.22. Itron had a net margin of 10.34% and a return on equity of 19.65%. The firm had revenue of $607.15 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $608.86 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.24 earnings per share. Itron's revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Itron, Inc. will post 5.33 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Itron

In related news, CFO Joan S. Hooper sold 938 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.95, for a total transaction of $107,823.10. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 89,364 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,272,391.80. This represents 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 this link. Also, SVP John F. Marcolini sold 3,783 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.73, for a total transaction of $441,589.59. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 21,865 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,552,301.45. The trade was a 14.75% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 20,905 shares of company stock valued at $2,439,202 over the last quarter. 1.51% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Itron

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sowell Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Itron in the first quarter valued at $266,000. Intech Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Itron by 112.7% in the 4th quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 41,363 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $4,491,000 after buying an additional 21,919 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its stake in Itron by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 16,795 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $1,759,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the period. Graphene Investments SAS purchased a new position in Itron in the 1st quarter worth about $2,724,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Itron by 180.7% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 333,363 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $36,197,000 after buying an additional 214,600 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.19% of the company's stock.

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.