Itron (NASDAQ:ITRI) Rating Increased to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Itron (NASDAQ:ITRI) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning.

ITRI has been the subject of a number of other reports. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Itron from $139.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 20th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Itron in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and set a $155.00 price target (up from $133.00) on shares of Itron in a report on Monday, July 14th. Roth Capital increased their price target on shares of Itron from $130.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Johnson Rice cut shares of Itron from a “buy” rating to an “accumulate” rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $137.10.

Itron Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ITRI opened at $125.44 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $124.03 and a 200-day simple moving average of $119.14. Itron has a one year low of $90.11 and a one year high of $140.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a current ratio of 2.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.44, a PEG ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 1.48.

Itron (NASDAQ:ITRI) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.62 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.29. Itron had a net margin of 11.05% and a return on equity of 19.69%. The business had revenue of $606.76 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $610.36 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.21 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. Itron has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.000-6.200 EPS. Q3 2025 guidance at 1.450-1.550 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Itron will post 5.33 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Itron

In other Itron news, SVP Justin K. Patrick sold 388 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.31, for a total transaction of $48,620.28. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 20,761 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,601,560.91. This represents a 1.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Christopher E. Ware sold 351 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.31, for a total transaction of $43,983.81. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 19,117 shares in the company, valued at $2,395,551.27. The trade was a 1.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 3,037 shares of company stock valued at $380,566 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.45% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ITRI. Impax Asset Management Group plc acquired a new stake in shares of Itron in the second quarter valued at approximately $91,998,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Itron in the second quarter valued at approximately $71,727,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its position in shares of Itron by 129.7% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 732,274 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $76,713,000 after purchasing an additional 413,487 shares during the last quarter. Merewether Investment Management LP grew its position in shares of Itron by 1,552.7% in the second quarter. Merewether Investment Management LP now owns 300,787 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $39,593,000 after purchasing an additional 282,587 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its stake in shares of Itron by 21.2% during the second quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 943,564 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $124,201,000 after buying an additional 165,300 shares during the period. 96.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Itron

Itron, Inc, a technology, solutions, and service company, provides end-to-end solutions that help manage energy, water, and smart city operations worldwide. It operates in three segments: Device Solutions, Networked Solutions, and Outcomes. The Device Solutions segment offers hardware products that are used for measurement, control, or sensing, such as standard gas, electricity, water, and communicating meters, as well as heat and allocation products.