StockNews.com Upgrades Hubbell (NYSE:HUBB) to “Buy”

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Hubbell (NYSE:HUBB) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report report published on Thursday morning.

A number of other brokerages also recently weighed in on HUBB. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Hubbell in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $535.00 target price for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered Hubbell from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $493.00 to $473.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Barclays boosted their target price on Hubbell from $402.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Mizuho raised their price target on Hubbell from $450.00 to $490.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered Hubbell from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $385.00 to $454.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $471.50.

Hubbell Price Performance

Shares of HUBB stock opened at $433.80 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $443.15 and its 200 day moving average is $416.47. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The stock has a market cap of $23.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.25, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.93. Hubbell has a twelve month low of $319.06 and a twelve month high of $481.35.

Hubbell (NYSE:HUBB) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $4.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.47 by $0.02. Hubbell had a net margin of 13.33% and a return on equity of 28.81%. The firm had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.48 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.95 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Hubbell will post 16.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hubbell Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th were issued a dividend of $1.32 per share. This is an increase from Hubbell’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. This represents a $5.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. Hubbell’s dividend payout ratio is presently 38.04%.

Insider Activity at Hubbell

In related news, insider Mark Eugene Mikes sold 1,144 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $466.20, for a total transaction of $533,332.80. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 2,957 shares in the company, valued at $1,378,553.40. This represents a 27.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.66% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hubbell

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HUBB. OLD National Bancorp IN grew its holdings in shares of Hubbell by 3.8% in the third quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 596 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $255,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its position in Hubbell by 12.3% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 228 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $96,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. JGP Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Hubbell by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. JGP Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,110 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $884,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the period. Avestar Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Hubbell by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 577 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $247,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ballentine Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Hubbell by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 956 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $410,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. 88.16% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hubbell Company Profile

Hubbell Incorporated, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and sells electrical and utility solutions in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments, Electrical Solutions and Utility Solutions. The Electrical Solution segment offers standard and special application wiring device products, rough-in electrical products, connector and grounding products, lighting fixtures, and other electrical equipment for use in industrial, commercial, and institutional facilities by electrical contractors, maintenance personnel, electricians, utilities, and telecommunications companies, as well as components and assemblies.