Hubbell (NYSE:HUBB) Upgraded at StockNews.com

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

HUBB has been the topic of several other reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Hubbell from $445.00 to $455.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of Hubbell from $450.00 to $490.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of Hubbell in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $535.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Hubbell from $400.00 to $402.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Hubbell from $407.00 to $445.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $449.11.

Hubbell Stock Performance

NYSE:HUBB opened at $458.81 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. Hubbell has a fifty-two week low of $293.91 and a fifty-two week high of $481.35. The stock has a market cap of $24.62 billion, a PE ratio of 33.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.90. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $444.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $403.47.

Hubbell (NYSE:HUBB) last posted its quarterly 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 business had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.48 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.95 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Hubbell will post 16.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hubbell Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be issued a dividend of $1.32 per share. This is a positive change from Hubbell’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. This represents a $5.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.15%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. Hubbell’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.16%.

Insider Transactions 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 2,957 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,378,553.40. This represents a 27.90 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.78% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Hubbell

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of HUBB. Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its position in Hubbell by 85.3% in the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 1,781 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $739,000 after acquiring an additional 820 shares in the last quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Hubbell by 10.0% in the first quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC now owns 703 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $292,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in Hubbell by 6.5% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 6,586 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,731,000 after acquiring an additional 403 shares in the last quarter. Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co acquired a new stake in shares of Hubbell during the first quarter worth approximately $950,000. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC grew its position in shares of Hubbell by 499.3% during the first quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 4,992 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,072,000 after buying an additional 4,159 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.16% 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.