Wakefield Asset Management LLLP Takes Position in Flowserve Co. (NYSE:FLS)

Wakefield Asset Management LLLP bought a new position in Flowserve Co. (NYSE:FLS - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 21,011 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $866,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of FLS. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Flowserve during the first quarter valued at $208,000. Raymond James & Associates boosted its position in Flowserve by 70.7% during the first quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 113,597 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $4,078,000 after purchasing an additional 47,032 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in Flowserve by 15.1% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 14,896 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $535,000 after purchasing an additional 1,950 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE boosted its position in Flowserve by 11.0% during the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 8,139 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $292,000 after purchasing an additional 807 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can raised its holdings in Flowserve by 3.2% during the first quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 159,979 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $5,667,000 after buying an additional 4,900 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.93% of the company's stock.

Flowserve Stock Performance

Flowserve stock traded up $0.02 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $47.90. The stock had a trading volume of 1,767,693 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,099,942. The company has a 50-day moving average of $43.49 and a two-hundred day moving average of $40.54. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The company has a market cap of $6.29 billion, a PE ratio of 33.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.46. Flowserve Co. has a fifty-two week low of $31.92 and a fifty-two week high of $48.25.

Flowserve (NYSE:FLS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The industrial products company reported $0.68 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.07. Flowserve had a return on equity of 14.44% and a net margin of 4.32%. The firm had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.14 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.63 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Flowserve Co. will post 2.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Flowserve Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 28th will be given a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 27th. This is a positive change from Flowserve's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.75%. Flowserve's dividend payout ratio is 59.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FLS has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Mizuho boosted their price target on Flowserve from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Flowserve from $46.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. StockNews.com raised Flowserve from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Flowserve from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on Flowserve from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $47.75.

About Flowserve

Flowserve Corporation designs, manufactures, distributes, and services industrial flow management equipment in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. It operates through Flowserve Pump Division (FPD) and Flow Control Division (FCD) segments. The FPD segment offers custom and pre-configured pumps and pump systems, mechanical seals, auxiliary systems, replacement parts, upgrades, and related aftermarket services; and equipment services, including installation and commissioning services, seal systems spare parts, repairs, advanced diagnostics, re-rate and upgrade solutions, retrofit programs, and machining and asset management solutions, as well as manufactures a gas-lubricated mechanical seal for use in high-speed compressors for gas pipelines and in the oil and gas production and process markets.