Ituran Location and Control (NASDAQ:ITRN) Sets New 52-Week High - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• 52-week high: Ituran hit a new 52-week high intraday (traded as high as $53.39, last at $53.6130) and was trading up about 4.2%, with a 50‑day/200‑day SMA of $48.51/$42.99 and a market cap near $1.07 billion.
• Dividend shock: Management raised the quarterly dividend from $0.50 to $1.50 (annualized $6.00), implying an 11.2% yield but a very high payout ratio of 206.19%, which may raise sustainability concerns.
• Analyst and fundamentals snapshot: Analysts have an average "Buy" rating with a $60.67 target (notable notes: Barclays lifted its target to $55, Maxim initiated at $70); latest quarter showed $0.77 EPS, a 16.15% net margin, 27.27% ROE and a P/E of 18.44.

Ituran Location and Control Ltd. (NASDAQ:ITRN - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $53.39 and last traded at $53.6130, with a volume of 50942 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $51.48.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ITRN has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Ituran Location and Control in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Ituran Location and Control from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday. Loop Capital set a $57.00 target price on shares of Ituran Location and Control in a report on Monday, March 9th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Ituran Location and Control from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Maxim Group initiated coverage on shares of Ituran Location and Control in a report on Thursday, March 12th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $70.00 price target on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $60.67.

Ituran Location and Control Trading Up 4.2%

The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $48.51 and a 200-day simple moving average of $42.99. The firm has a market cap of $1.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.44 and a beta of 0.66.

Ituran Location and Control (NASDAQ:ITRN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Saturday, February 14th. The industrial products company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter. Ituran Location and Control had a return on equity of 27.27% and a net margin of 16.15%.The firm had revenue of $93.50 million during the quarter.

Ituran Location and Control Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 30th will be issued a $1.50 dividend. This is a boost from Ituran Location and Control's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 30th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 11.2%. Ituran Location and Control's payout ratio is presently 206.19%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Ibex Investors LLC grew its position in Ituran Location and Control by 2.3% in the third quarter. Ibex Investors LLC now owns 896,313 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $32,016,000 after acquiring an additional 20,000 shares in the last quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd raised its position in Ituran Location and Control by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 858,274 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $37,236,000 after purchasing an additional 39,718 shares during the period. GW&K Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ituran Location and Control by 909.3% in the 4th quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 539,817 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $23,218,000 after purchasing an additional 486,331 shares during the last quarter. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ituran Location and Control by 7.0% in the 4th quarter. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC now owns 528,164 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $22,716,000 after purchasing an additional 34,550 shares during the period. Finally, River Road Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ituran Location and Control by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 410,105 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $17,639,000 after purchasing an additional 1,370 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.80% of the company's stock.

Ituran Location and Control Company Profile

Ituran Location and Control Ltd. is a provider of wireless vehicle tracking and stolen vehicle recovery services. The company leverages a combination of cellular and global positioning system (GPS) technologies to offer real-time monitoring and location-based solutions for private vehicle owners, fleet operators and insurance companies. Its core offerings include subscription-based tracking devices, centralized control centers and software platforms that enable clients to detect unauthorized vehicle use, dispatch recovery teams and manage fleet logistics.

Founded in 1994 in Israel, Ituran pioneered the use of wireless communications for security and telematics applications.

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