Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. Makes New Investment in Hubbell Incorporated (NYSE:HUBB)

Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. bought a new stake in shares of Hubbell Incorporated (NYSE:HUBB) in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm bought 885 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $371,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV increased its position in Hubbell by 85.7% during the 4th quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 65 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Groupama Asset Managment increased its holdings in shares of Hubbell by 17.0% during the third quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 6,955 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 1,010 shares in the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hubbell in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in Hubbell by 64.6% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 79 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Hubbell by 69.7% during the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 129 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. 88.16% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Hubbell Price Performance

NYSE HUBB opened at $331.68 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.10, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.94. Hubbell Incorporated has a 1-year low of $330.32 and a 1-year high of $481.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $379.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $418.41.

Hubbell (NYSE:HUBB) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The industrial products company reported $4.10 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.02 by $0.08. The company 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%. Hubbell’s revenue was down .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.69 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Hubbell Incorporated will post 17.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Hubbell Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $1.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $5.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.59%. Hubbell’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.77%.

Hubbell announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, February 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the industrial products company to buy up to 2.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on HUBB. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Hubbell from $455.00 to $450.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Hubbell from $422.00 to $400.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Hubbell from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hubbell has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $462.13.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Alyssa R. Flynn sold 1,164 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $389.06, for a total transaction of $452,865.84. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 4,327 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,683,462.62. The trade was a 21.20 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.66% of the company’s stock.

About Hubbell

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.