StockNews.com Downgrades Northwest Pipe (NASDAQ:NWPX) to Hold

Northwest Pipe (NASDAQ:NWPX) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Monday.

Separately, Northland Securities increased their price target on shares of Northwest Pipe from $40.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd.

Northwest Pipe Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of NWPX stock opened at $44.79 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $444.09 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.82, a PEG ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 0.99. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $41.70 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $36.79. Northwest Pipe has a 1 year low of $25.67 and a 1 year high of $46.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 3.06 and a quick ratio of 2.19.

Northwest Pipe (NASDAQ:NWPX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The industrial products company reported $0.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.19. Northwest Pipe had a return on equity of 7.34% and a net margin of 5.33%. The company had revenue of $129.51 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $119.76 million. As a group, analysts anticipate that Northwest Pipe will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Northwest Pipe

In related news, VP Megan A. Kendrick sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.37, for a total transaction of $42,370.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 10,725 shares in the company, valued at $454,418.25. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, EVP Miles Brittain sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.90, for a total value of $188,550.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 25,858 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,083,450.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Megan A. Kendrick sold 1,000 shares of Northwest Pipe stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.37, for a total transaction of $42,370.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 10,725 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $454,418.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 3.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Northwest Pipe

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NWPX. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Northwest Pipe by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 755,883 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $22,873,000 after purchasing an additional 5,572 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Northwest Pipe by 1.8% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 506,110 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $17,552,000 after acquiring an additional 8,924 shares during the last quarter. Foundry Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Northwest Pipe by 0.8% during the second quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 175,945 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,977,000 after acquiring an additional 1,340 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Northwest Pipe by 26.7% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 125,821 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,274,000 after acquiring an additional 26,532 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Northwest Pipe by 11.0% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 72,942 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,207,000 after purchasing an additional 7,242 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.63% of the company’s stock.

About Northwest Pipe

Northwest Pipe Company, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and supply of water-related infrastructure products in North America. It operates in two segments, Engineered Steel Pressure Pipe (SPP) and Precast Infrastructure and Engineered Systems (Precast). The SPP segment offers large-diameter and high-pressure steel pipeline systems for use in water infrastructure applications, which are primarily related to drinking water systems.