Banque Cantonale Vaudoise Sells 1,396 Shares of AECOM (NYSE:ACM)

Banque Cantonale Vaudoise reduced its position in AECOM (NYSE:ACM) by 60.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 898 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 1,396 shares during the quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise’s holdings in AECOM were worth $93,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Caprock Group LLC lifted its position in AECOM by 26.2% in the third quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 3,234 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $334,000 after purchasing an additional 672 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank lifted its position in AECOM by 0.3% in the third quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 403,980 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $41,719,000 after purchasing an additional 1,300 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its position in AECOM by 9.7% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 37,122 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,833,000 after purchasing an additional 3,281 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in AECOM by 4.0% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 9,389 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $970,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its position in AECOM by 3.5% in the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 3,949 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $408,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the period. 85.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AECOM Price Performance

Shares of ACM stock opened at $116.30 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $105.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $96.06. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. The firm has a market cap of $15.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.29, a PEG ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.17. AECOM has a 12 month low of $82.23 and a 12 month high of $116.76.

AECOM (NYSE:ACM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 18th. The construction company reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.24 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.86 billion. AECOM had a return on equity of 25.28% and a net margin of 2.50%. The company’s revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.01 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that AECOM will post 4.95 EPS for the current year.

AECOM declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Monday, November 18th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the construction company to buy up to 6.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

AECOM Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be given a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.89%. This is a positive change from AECOM’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 2nd. AECOM’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.73%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AECOM news, CFO Gaurav Kapoor sold 42,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.34, for a total transaction of $4,890,416.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 31,228 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,601,837.52. This trade represents a 57.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on AECOM from $112.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on AECOM in a report on Friday. They set a “buy” rating and a $130.00 price objective for the company. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on AECOM from $115.00 to $122.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. StockNews.com raised AECOM from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, October 27th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on AECOM from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $119.38.

AECOM Company Profile

AECOM, together with its subsidiaries, provides professional infrastructure consulting services worldwide. It operates in three segments: Americas, International, and AECOM Capital. The company offers planning, consulting, architectural and engineering design, construction and program management, and investment and development services to public and private clients.