Babcock (NYSE:BW) Sees Large Volume Increase - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Babcock shares rose to $5.135, with trading volume about 22% above average.
• Third-quarter revenue climbed 109% year over year to $290.8 million, beating expectations; adjusted EBITDA rose to $17.7 million, and bookings more than doubled. Management maintained its 2026 EBITDA outlook and set a $125 million–$140 million target for 2027.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: MarketBeat’s consensus rating is Hold, despite three Buy ratings, and a class-action investor notice adds uncertainty.

Shares of Babcock (NYSE:BW - Get Free Report) saw an uptick in trading volume on Wednesday. Approximately 5,258,476 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 22% from the average daily volume of 4,315,083 shares. The stock last traded at $5.1350 and had previously closed at $4.48.

Trending Headlines about Babcock

These are some of the BW headlines that stood out recently:

• Positive Sentiment: Q3 results topped revenue expectations: Revenue rose 109% year over year to $290.8 million, ahead of the cited $226.5 million consensus. Adjusted EBITDA increased to $17.7 million from $9.4 million a year earlier, while bookings more than doubled to $228 million. The company also reported $0.03 EPS, in line with consensus. Babcock & Wilcox Q3 results
• Positive Sentiment: Management set a higher 2027 target: Babcock reiterated its 2026 adjusted EBITDA range of $80 million–$105 million and outlined a $125 million–$140 million target for 2027. Its $2.5 billion backlog and redemption of $61.8 million in bonds also provide supportive context, though reported earnings included a substantial warrant fair-value gain. 2027 EBITDA target and pipeline
• Negative Sentiment: Litigation-related uncertainty remains: Pomerantz issued an investor notice concerning a class-action lawsuit and invited investors with losses to contact the firm. The notice may add uncertainty, but is not itself a finding of wrongdoing. Investor notice regarding class-action lawsuit

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Needham & Company LLC cut their price target on shares of Babcock from $20.00 to $15.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of Babcock in a research note on Wednesday, November 4th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Babcock from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, August 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $15.75.

Babcock Price Performance

The business's 50 day moving average price is $5.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $11.27. The stock has a market cap of $744.08 million, a P/E ratio of -10.88 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.45, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.21.

Babcock (NYSE:BW - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 10th. The technology company reported $0.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.02 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $319.72 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $196.95 million. Babcock had a negative return on equity of 15.21% and a net margin of 4.11%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Babcock will post 0.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Babcock news, Director Philip Moeller purchased 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 13th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $9.50 per share, for a total transaction of $47,500.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 240,809 shares in the company, valued at $2,287,685.50. The trade was a 2.12% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 2.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Babcock

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Kieckhefer Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Babcock in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,298,000. Situational Awareness LP raised its stake in Babcock by 49.7% during the second quarter. Situational Awareness LP now owns 2,027,451 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $28,587,000 after buying an additional 673,551 shares during the last quarter. Cooper Creek Partners Management LLC purchased a new position in Babcock during the first quarter valued at $15,205,000. Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new stake in Babcock in the second quarter worth $18,260,000. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. bought a new stake in Babcock in the second quarter worth $8,636,000. Institutional investors own 83.17% of the company's stock.

Babcock Company Profile

Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises, Inc. is an energy and environmental technology company serving power, industrial and municipal customers. Its offerings include steam-generation equipment, emissions-control systems and related engineering, construction, maintenance and aftermarket services. The company also develops technologies for renewable and waste-to-energy applications, including systems that use biomass and municipal solid waste to produce energy. Its environmental technologies help customers manage emissions and other byproducts from energy and industrial processes.

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