Ormat Technologies (NYSE:ORA) Hits New 1-Year High - Here's Why

Key Points

• Ormat Technologies' stock (NYSE:ORA) reached a new 52-week high of $95.50, driven by positive analyst ratings and increased price targets from various financial institutions.
• The company reported a quarterly earnings per share of $0.48, exceeding analysts' estimates, and had a revenue of $234.02 million, which reflects a 9.9% increase year-over-year.
• Ormat Technologies recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.12, representing an annual yield of 0.5%, while insiders have been selling shares of the company, with notable transactions reported in September.

Ormat Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:ORA - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $95.50 and last traded at $95.31, with a volume of 167098 shares. The stock had previously closed at $94.87.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ORA has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Baird R W raised Ormat Technologies from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Ormat Technologies from $76.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Roth Capital reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $98.00 price target (up from $88.00) on shares of Ormat Technologies in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Robert W. Baird raised Ormat Technologies from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $87.00 to $103.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Cowen reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Ormat Technologies in a research report on Friday, August 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $94.50.

Ormat Technologies Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $5.80 billion, a PE ratio of 44.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a current ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $90.73 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $81.21.

Ormat Technologies (NYSE:ORA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The energy company reported $0.48 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.37 by $0.11. Ormat Technologies had a return on equity of 5.47% and a net margin of 14.49%.The firm had revenue of $234.02 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $225.26 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.37 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Ormat Technologies, Inc. will post 1.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ormat Technologies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 20th were given a $0.12 dividend. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 20th. Ormat Technologies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Assi Ginzburg sold 9,343 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.31, for a total value of $871,795.33. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 24,482 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,284,415.42. This represents a 27.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Jessica Woelfel sold 692 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.57, for a total transaction of $65,442.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 5,234 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $494,979.38. The trade was a 11.68% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 18,711 shares of company stock worth $1,754,320. Corporate insiders own 0.56% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ormat Technologies

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of ORA. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Ormat Technologies by 19.1% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,890,235 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $133,770,000 after purchasing an additional 303,756 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Ormat Technologies by 3.4% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,467,156 shares of the energy company's stock worth $122,902,000 after purchasing an additional 48,038 shares during the last quarter. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. boosted its position in shares of Ormat Technologies by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. now owns 1,280,026 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $90,587,000 after acquiring an additional 33,719 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its stake in shares of Ormat Technologies by 62.6% in the 2nd quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 1,073,639 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $89,928,000 after purchasing an additional 413,384 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. boosted its stake in Ormat Technologies by 273,109.4% in the first quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. now owns 956,233 shares of the energy company's stock worth $67,673,000 after purchasing an additional 955,883 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.49% of the company's stock.

About Ormat Technologies

Ormat Technologies, Inc engages in the geothermal and recovered energy power business in the United States, Indonesia, Kenya, Turkey, Chile, Guatemala, Guadeloupe, New Zealand, Honduras, and internationally. It operates in three segments: Electricity, Product, and Energy Storage. The Electricity segment develops, builds, owns, and operates geothermal, solar photovoltaic, and recovered energy-based power plants; and sells electricity.

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