StockNews.com Upgrades Energy Recovery (NASDAQ:ERII) to Buy

Energy Recovery (NASDAQ:ERII) was upgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday.

A number of other analysts also recently commented on ERII. Scotiabank began coverage on Energy Recovery in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $22.00 target price on the stock. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Energy Recovery to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Energy Recovery presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $20.75.

Energy Recovery Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ERII opened at $15.95 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $876.53 million, a PE ratio of 46.91 and a beta of 1.21. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $15.33 and its 200-day simple moving average is $16.20. Energy Recovery has a one year low of $12.26 and a one year high of $20.27.

Energy Recovery (NASDAQ:ERII) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The industrial products company reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by ($0.01). Energy Recovery had a return on equity of 8.90% and a net margin of 14.35%. The firm had revenue of $67.08 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $67.39 million. Equities research analysts predict that Energy Recovery will post 0.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Energy Recovery news, SVP Rodney Clemente sold 21,444 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.42, for a total transaction of $330,666.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 111,109 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,713,300.78. This represents a 16.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Arve Hanstveit sold 50,000 shares of Energy Recovery stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.34, for a total transaction of $817,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 693,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,326,593.88. This trade represents a 6.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 4.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Energy Recovery

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in Energy Recovery by 24.6% in the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 4,953,951 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $72,823,000 after purchasing an additional 978,490 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Energy Recovery during the fourth quarter worth $5,741,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new stake in shares of Energy Recovery in the fourth quarter valued at about $4,670,000. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Energy Recovery in the fourth quarter valued at about $3,798,000. Finally, Baillie Gifford & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Energy Recovery by 27.8% in the fourth quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 1,119,841 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $16,462,000 after buying an additional 243,653 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.58% of the company’s stock.

About Energy Recovery

Energy Recovery, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and sells energy efficiency technology solutions in the Americas, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and Europe. The company operates through Water and Emerging Technologies segments. The company offers high and low pressure, and ultra pressure exchangers; AT and LPT hydraulic turbochargers; and high-pressure feed and circulation booster pumps for use in seawater and brackish desalination, and wastewater treatment.