Oppenheimer Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Itron (NASDAQ:ITRI) Stock

Itron (NASDAQ:ITRI) had its target price raised by Oppenheimer from $120.00 to $124.00 in a research report released on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an outperform rating on the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on ITRI. Janney Montgomery Scott initiated coverage on shares of Itron in a report on Friday, September 27th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $131.00 target price on the stock. Guggenheim upgraded Itron from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $110.00 price objective on shares of Itron in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $125.00 target price on shares of Itron in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, BNP Paribas initiated coverage on Itron in a report on Thursday, September 5th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $133.00 price target for the company. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Itron has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $123.50.

Itron Price Performance

NASDAQ ITRI opened at $114.97 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $5.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.46. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $104.14 and its two-hundred day moving average is $102.91. Itron has a fifty-two week low of $62.45 and a fifty-two week high of $116.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 3.36 and a quick ratio of 2.61.

Itron (NASDAQ:ITRI) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.13 by $0.71. Itron had a return on equity of 19.03% and a net margin of 9.37%. The firm had revenue of $615.46 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $596.41 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.98 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Itron will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Itron

In other Itron news, SVP Donald L. Reeves III sold 4,210 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.00, for a total value of $425,210.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 16,269 shares in the company, valued at $1,643,169. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Itron news, CEO Thomas Deitrich sold 887 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.15, for a total transaction of $90,607.05. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 205,276 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,968,943.40. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Donald L. Reeves III sold 4,210 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.00, for a total transaction of $425,210.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 16,269 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,643,169. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 43,276 shares of company stock valued at $4,515,846 in the last 90 days. 1.45% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Chartwell Investment Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Itron in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,891,000. Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc. increased its holdings in Itron by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc. now owns 21,664 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $2,314,000 after purchasing an additional 393 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its position in Itron by 25.5% in the 3rd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 40,150 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $4,288,000 after buying an additional 8,159 shares during the last quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D raised its holdings in shares of Itron by 10.9% in the third quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 19,506 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $2,083,000 after purchasing an additional 1,925 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. lifted its position in Itron by 14.3% during the 3rd quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 5,769 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $616,000 after buying an additional 723 shares in the last quarter. 96.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Itron

Itron, Inc, a technology, solutions, and service company, provides end-to-end solutions that help manage energy, water, and smart city operations worldwide. It operates in three segments: Device Solutions, Networked Solutions, and Outcomes. The Device Solutions segment offers hardware products that are used for measurement, control, or sensing, such as standard gas, electricity, water, and communicating meters, as well as heat and allocation products.