Robert W. Baird Issues Pessimistic Forecast for AZZ (NYSE:AZZ) Stock Price

AZZ (NYSE:AZZ) had its target price decreased by equities researchers at Robert W. Baird from $155.00 to $150.00 in a research report issued on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “neutral” rating on the industrial products company’s stock. Robert W. Baird’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 9.18% from the stock’s current price.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of AZZ from $138.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. B. Riley Financial increased their target price on AZZ from $169.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of AZZ in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Barclays assumed coverage on AZZ in a research report on Wednesday. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $140.00 target price for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded AZZ from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, July 12th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AZZ has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $152.20.

AZZ Trading Up 0.5%

NYSE:AZZ opened at $137.39 on Thursday. AZZ has a 1-year low of $94.61 and a 1-year high of $162.20. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $139.88 and a 200 day simple moving average of $142.08. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.76 and a beta of 1.13.

AZZ (NYSE:AZZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 13th. The industrial products company reported $2.00 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $486.89 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $463.44 million. AZZ had a net margin of 9.59% and a return on equity of 15.05%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.55 EPS. AZZ has set its FY 2027 guidance at 7.000-7.300 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that AZZ will post 7.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AZZ news, COO Bryan Lee Stovall sold 2,677 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.07, for a total transaction of $401,737.39. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 35,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,252,450. This represents a 7.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Jeffrey Vellines sold 4,220 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.55, for a total transaction of $647,981.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 1,834 shares in the company, valued at $281,610.70. The trade was a 69.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of AZZ

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. PDT Partners LLC acquired a new position in AZZ in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,597,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new position in AZZ in the 2nd quarter worth $2,716,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in AZZ during the 2nd quarter worth $32,505,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in AZZ during the 2nd quarter worth $2,186,000. Finally, Jupiter Topco LLC acquired a new position in AZZ during the 2nd quarter worth $14,588,000. Institutional investors own 90.93% of the company’s stock.

About AZZ

AZZ Inc is a provider of metal coating solutions serving customers primarily in North America. The company operates through its Metal Coatings and Precoat Metals segments, helping protect and enhance the performance, appearance, and durability of steel and other metal products used across a range of industries.

Through its Metal Coatings segment, AZZ provides hot-dip galvanizing, powder coating, anodizing, plating, and related coating services. These treatments are used for corrosion protection and finishing applications involving infrastructure, construction, industrial, transportation, and other metal products.

Precoat Metals provides coil coating services for steel and aluminum products before they are fabricated.