Prudential Financial Inc. Decreases Holdings in Hubbell Incorporated (NYSE:HUBB)

Prudential Financial Inc. lowered its holdings in Hubbell Incorporated (NYSE:HUBB) by 12.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 29,731 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 4,126 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. owned about 0.06% of Hubbell worth $12,836,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV grew its holdings in shares of Hubbell by 85.7% during the fourth quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 65 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Groupama Asset Managment grew its stake in Hubbell by 17.0% during the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 6,955 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 1,010 shares during the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Hubbell during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in Hubbell by 64.6% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 79 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the period. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Hubbell by 69.7% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 129 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.16% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on HUBB. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Hubbell from $422.00 to $400.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Hubbell from $455.00 to $450.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Hubbell from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $462.13.

Hubbell Stock Down 1.3 %

HUBB stock opened at $342.04 on Friday. Hubbell Incorporated has a one year low of $330.32 and a one year high of $481.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.64. The company has a fifty day moving average of $382.09 and a 200-day moving average of $418.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.36 billion, a PE ratio of 23.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.94.

Hubbell (NYSE:HUBB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The industrial products company reported $4.10 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.02 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $1.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 quarter last year, the firm earned $3.69 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Hubbell Incorporated will post 17.63 EPS for the current year.

Hubbell Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were given a $1.32 dividend. This represents a $5.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. Hubbell’s payout ratio is 36.77%.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Hubbell

In other Hubbell 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 transaction, the insider now directly 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.66% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hubbell Company Profile

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.