National Pension Service Decreases Stock Holdings in Hubbell Incorporated (NYSE:HUBB)

National Pension Service reduced its holdings in shares of Hubbell Incorporated (NYSE:HUBB) by 9.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 71,752 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 7,200 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service owned 0.13% of Hubbell worth $30,056,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its stake in Hubbell by 122.4% during the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 28,723 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $12,032,000 after buying an additional 15,806 shares during the period. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. grew its stake in Hubbell by 26.0% during the fourth quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 9,144 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,830,000 after buying an additional 1,886 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Hubbell by 7.1% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 229,210 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $98,187,000 after purchasing an additional 15,215 shares in the last quarter. LGT Capital Partners LTD. acquired a new position in shares of Hubbell during the third quarter worth $39,687,000. Finally, Impax Asset Management Group plc lifted its position in shares of Hubbell by 30.3% during the third quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 1,202,455 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $514,377,000 after purchasing an additional 279,654 shares in the last quarter. 88.16% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on HUBB. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of Hubbell from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $493.00 to $473.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Hubbell in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $535.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Hubbell from $455.00 to $450.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Hubbell from $402.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Hubbell from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 17th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hubbell currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $471.50.

Hubbell Trading Up 0.6 %

HUBB opened at $371.51 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.94 billion, a PE ratio of 25.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.92. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $413.77 and its 200 day moving average price is $423.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 0.98. Hubbell Incorporated has a 12-month low of $346.13 and a 12-month high of $481.35.

Hubbell (NYSE:HUBB) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The industrial products company reported $4.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.02 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $1.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.41 billion. Hubbell had a net margin of 13.82% and a return on equity of 28.62%. The firm’s revenue was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.69 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Hubbell Incorporated will post 17.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hubbell Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a dividend of $1.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $5.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.42%. Hubbell’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.77%.

Hubbell declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, February 12th that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the industrial products company to buy up to 2.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Alyssa R. Flynn sold 1,164 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $389.06, for a total transaction of $452,865.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 4,327 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,683,462.62. This represents a 21.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.66% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Hubbell

Hubbell Incorporated, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and sells electrical and utility solutions in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments, Electrical Solutions and Utility Solutions. The Electrical Solution segment offers standard and special application wiring device products, rough-in electrical products, connector and grounding products, lighting fixtures, and other electrical equipment for use in industrial, commercial, and institutional facilities by electrical contractors, maintenance personnel, electricians, utilities, and telecommunications companies, as well as components and assemblies.