ING Groep NV Raises Position in Hubbell Incorporated (NYSE:HUBB)

ING Groep NV lifted its stake in shares of Hubbell Incorporated (NYSE:HUBB) by 32.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 6,855 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 1,676 shares during the quarter. ING Groep NV’s holdings in Hubbell were worth $2,871,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of HUBB. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its position in Hubbell by 122.4% in the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 28,723 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $12,032,000 after buying an additional 15,806 shares during the last quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Hubbell by 26.0% in the fourth quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 9,144 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,830,000 after acquiring an additional 1,886 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Hubbell by 7.1% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 229,210 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $98,187,000 after purchasing an additional 15,215 shares during the last quarter. LGT Capital Partners LTD. acquired a new stake in Hubbell during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $39,687,000. Finally, Impax Asset Management Group plc increased its holdings in Hubbell by 30.3% during the 3rd quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 1,202,455 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $514,377,000 after purchasing an additional 279,654 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.16% of the company’s stock.

Hubbell Price Performance

HUBB opened at $376.74 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $420.03 and its 200 day moving average price is $423.99. Hubbell Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $346.13 and a fifty-two week high of $481.35. The firm has a market cap of $20.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.92.

Hubbell (NYSE:HUBB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The industrial products company reported $4.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.02 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $1.33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.41 billion. Hubbell had a return on equity of 28.62% and a net margin of 13.82%. The business’s revenue was down .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.69 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Hubbell Incorporated will post 17.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Hubbell Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $1.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $5.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.40%. Hubbell’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.77%.

Hubbell announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, February 12th that permits the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the industrial products company to purchase up to 2.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HUBB has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Hubbell in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $535.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Hubbell from $455.00 to $450.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. StockNews.com raised shares of Hubbell from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 17th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Hubbell from $407.00 to $445.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered Hubbell from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $493.00 to $473.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Hubbell has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $471.50.

Hubbell 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.