Bailard Inc. Buys 1,273 Shares of Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI)

Bailard Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI) by 4.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 29,001 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,273 shares during the quarter. Bailard Inc.’s holdings in Itron were worth $3,149,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Itron by 347.5% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 886 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $97,000 after purchasing an additional 688 shares during the last quarter. California First Leasing Corp acquired a new position in Itron in the 4th quarter valued at $912,000. Illumine Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Itron in the 4th quarter worth $757,000. Fort Sheridan Advisors LLC lifted its position in Itron by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Fort Sheridan Advisors LLC now owns 10,798 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $1,172,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Itron during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. 96.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on ITRI shares. StockNews.com downgraded Itron from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Itron from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their target price on shares of Itron from $130.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Guggenheim reduced their price target on shares of Itron from $135.00 to $133.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Itron from $124.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Itron has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $127.64.

Itron Stock Up 1.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ ITRI opened at $108.89 on Monday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $104.96 and a two-hundred day moving average of $107.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 2.83 and a current ratio of 3.36. Itron, Inc. has a 52-week low of $86.13 and a 52-week high of $124.90. The stock has a market cap of $4.91 billion, a PE ratio of 22.31, a PEG ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.46.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO David Marshall Wright sold 317 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.90, for a total transaction of $29,449.30. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 8,108 shares in the company, valued at $753,233.20. This represents a 3.76 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Mary C. Hemmingsen sold 750 shares of Itron stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.27, for a total value of $80,452.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 5,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $603,930.10. The trade was a 11.76 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 4,037 shares of company stock worth $385,815 in the last quarter. 1.45% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.