Stock Traders Buy Large Volume of Itron Put Options (NASDAQ:ITRI)

Key Points

• Unusual options activity: Investors purchased 3,237 Itron put options, a 1,543% increase over the typical volume of 197 contracts, signaling elevated downside-protection or bearish interest.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive: Itron has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $131.33, despite ratings ranging from Sell to Strong Buy.
• Shares declined 1.7% to $93.90: Itron exceeded quarterly EPS expectations ($1.59 versus $1.29), but revenue fell 7.2% year over year to $562.9 million. Insiders also sold shares recently, though the transactions were disclosed as covering tax withholding obligations.

Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI - Get Free Report) saw some unusual options trading on Friday. Investors acquired 3,237 put options on the company. This represents an increase of 1,543% compared to the typical volume of 197 put options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ITRI has been the subject of a number of research reports. Robert W. Baird set a $125.00 price target on shares of Itron in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Itron in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Seaport Research Partners reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $150.00 price objective on shares of Itron in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $130.00 target price on shares of Itron in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Itron from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Itron presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $131.33.

Insider Activity at Itron

In related news, SVP Donald Reeves, III sold 329 shares of Itron stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.79, for a total value of $32,501.91. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 27,945 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,760,686.55. The trade was a 1.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, SVP John F. Marcolini sold 331 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.79, for a total transaction of $32,699.49. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 12,683 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,252,953.57. This trade represents a 2.54% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold 7,693 shares of company stock valued at $759,475 over the last ninety days. 1.77% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Itron

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ITRI. Employees Retirement System of Texas bought a new stake in shares of Itron in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. PenderFund Capital Management Ltd. bought a new position in Itron during the second quarter worth about $35,000. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in Itron during the second quarter worth about $36,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in Itron by 29.5% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 443 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares during the period. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new position in Itron in the second quarter valued at about $48,000. 96.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Itron Trading Down 1.7%

Shares of ITRI stock traded down $1.65 on Friday, reaching $93.90. The company had a trading volume of 63,866 shares, compared to its average volume of 854,269. The company has a current ratio of 2.75, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The stock has a market cap of $4.11 billion, a PE ratio of 15.73, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a 50-day moving average of $93.45 and a 200-day moving average of $89.93. Itron has a 12 month low of $77.77 and a 12 month high of $142.00.

Itron (NASDAQ:ITRI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.29 by $0.30. The business had revenue of $562.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $566.34 million. Itron had a net margin of 11.90% and a return on equity of 19.26%. Itron's quarterly revenue was down 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.62 EPS. Itron has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 1.500-1.600 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 6.300-6.500 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Itron will post 6.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Itron Company Profile

Itron, Inc NASDAQ: ITRI is a global technology company that develops innovative solutions to measure, manage and analyze the use of energy and water. Its comprehensive portfolio includes smart meters, data collection devices, communication networks and advanced software applications designed to optimize utility operations and foster sustainable resource management. The company's offerings enable utilities and cities to accurately monitor consumption patterns, streamline billing processes and improve grid reliability.

Itron's product lineup spans a range of hardware and software solutions, from residential and commercial smart meters to meter data management systems (MDMS), networked communication platforms and analytics tools.

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