John Bean Technologies (NYSE:JBT) Hits New 52-Week High – What’s Next?

John Bean Technologies Co. (NYSE:JBT) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $128.60 and last traded at $128.17, with a volume of 320396 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $124.78.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on JBT. CJS Securities started coverage on shares of John Bean Technologies in a report on Thursday, December 12th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $150.00 target price for the company. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of John Bean Technologies in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $130.00 price target for the company.

John Bean Technologies Trading Up 2.2 %

The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $117.11 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $101.95. The company has a market cap of $4.06 billion, a PE ratio of 23.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 2.55 and a quick ratio of 2.00.

John Bean Technologies (NYSE:JBT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The industrial products company reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $453.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $442.20 million. John Bean Technologies had a return on equity of 10.16% and a net margin of 10.25%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.11 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that John Bean Technologies Co. will post 5.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

John Bean Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.31%. John Bean Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.42%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of JBT. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in shares of John Bean Technologies in the 3rd quarter valued at about $39,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new position in John Bean Technologies during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $258,000. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of John Bean Technologies in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $258,000. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky raised its holdings in shares of John Bean Technologies by 67.9% in the 3rd quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 184,479 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $18,173,000 after purchasing an additional 74,636 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of John Bean Technologies by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 729,853 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $71,912,000 after purchasing an additional 3,440 shares during the last quarter. 98.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About John Bean Technologies

John Bean Technologies Corporation provides technology solutions to food and beverage industry in North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia Pacific, and Latin America. It offers value-added processing that includes chilling, mixing/grinding, injecting, blending, marinating, tumbling, flattening, forming, portioning, coating, cooking, frying, freezing, extracting, pasteurizing, sterilizing, concentrating, high pressure processing, weighing, inspecting, filling, closing, sealing, end of line material handling, and packaging solutions to the food, beverage, and health market.