Babcock (NYSE:BW) Reaches New 12-Month Low – Should You Sell?

Shares of Babcock (NYSE:BW) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday. The stock traded as low as $3.98 and last traded at $3.9050, with a volume of 867,467 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $4.23.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on BW shares. Needham & Company LLC began coverage on Babcock in a research note on Monday, August 31st. They set a “buy” rating and a $20.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded Babcock from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Babcock from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, August 23rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Babcock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $17.00.

Babcock Price Performance

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $5.81 and a 200-day simple moving average of $11.34. The stock has a market cap of $481.89 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -17.97 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.45, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.21.

Babcock (NYSE:BW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 10th. The technology company reported $0.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.02 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $319.72 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $196.95 million. Babcock had a negative return on equity of 4.51% and a negative net margin of 2.17%. Research analysts expect that Babcock will post 0.27 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Babcock

In other Babcock news, Director Philip Moeller purchased 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 13th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $9.50 per share, with a total value of $47,500.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 240,809 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,287,685.50. This represents a 2.12% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Babcock

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in Babcock by 57.3% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,785 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 650 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in Babcock by 3.0% during the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 55,733 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $819,000 after buying an additional 1,604 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new stake in Babcock in the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC boosted its stake in Babcock by 30.6% during the first quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 13,057 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $208,000 after acquiring an additional 3,057 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Babcock in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Institutional investors own 83.17% of the company’s stock.

Babcock Company Profile

Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises, Inc is an energy and environmental technology company that provides equipment, systems and services for power generation, industrial operations and waste management. Its offerings include steam-generating technologies, boilers, emissions-control systems, construction and maintenance services, and related engineering support.

The company also develops technologies for renewable energy and waste conversion, including solutions designed to transform waste and biomass into useful heat and power.