Janus Henderson Group PLC Boosts Stock Position in Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI)

Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its stake in shares of Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI - Free Report) by 2.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 536,288 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after acquiring an additional 12,810 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC owned approximately 1.19% of Itron worth $58,233,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Itron by 78.3% in the fourth quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 6,083 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $660,000 after buying an additional 2,671 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Itron by 112.7% in the fourth quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 41,363 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $4,491,000 after purchasing an additional 21,919 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of 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 valued at $36,197,000 after acquiring an additional 214,600 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Itron during the 4th quarter worth about $301,000. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Itron by 143.2% during the 4th quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 7,355 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $799,000 after purchasing an additional 4,331 shares during the period. 96.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Insider Activity at Itron

In related news, Director Mary C. Hemmingsen sold 750 shares of Itron stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.27, for a total transaction of $80,452.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 5,630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $603,930.10. This trade represents a 11.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Christopher E. Ware sold 648 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.90, for a total transaction of $60,199.20. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 20,326 shares of the company's stock, 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. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 9,187 shares of company stock valued at $945,620. 1.45% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Itron Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:ITRI traded down $1.16 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $113.66. 30,496 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 570,065. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.29, a P/E/G ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 2.83 and a current ratio of 3.36. Itron, Inc. has a 12 month low of $90.11 and a 12 month high of $124.90. The business's 50-day moving average price is $105.28 and its 200 day moving average price is $107.94.

Itron (NASDAQ:ITRI - Get Free Report) last released its 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. Itron had a return on equity of 19.03% and a net margin of 9.37%. The business had revenue of $607.15 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $608.86 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.24 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Itron, Inc. will post 5.33 earnings per share for the current year.

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.