StockNews.com Upgrades Hubbell (NYSE:HUBB) to Buy

Hubbell (NYSE:HUBB) was upgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Thursday.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Hubbell from $407.00 to $445.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Hubbell in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $535.00 price target for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Hubbell from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $431.00 to $441.00 in a research note on Friday, September 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Hubbell from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $385.00 to $454.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $450.00 target price on shares of Hubbell in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hubbell currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $445.56.

Hubbell Stock Down 0.6 %

HUBB opened at $437.61 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $23.49 billion, a PE ratio of 31.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a 50 day moving average of $433.75 and a 200 day moving average of $399.39. Hubbell has a 12 month low of $287.06 and a 12 month high of $481.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

Hubbell (NYSE:HUBB) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $4.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.47 by $0.02. Hubbell had a return on equity of 28.81% and a net margin of 13.33%. The business had revenue of $1.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.48 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.95 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Hubbell will post 16.47 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Hubbell

In other Hubbell news, insider Mark Eugene Mikes sold 1,144 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $466.20, for a total value of $533,332.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 2,957 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,378,553.40. This represents a 27.90 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.66% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hubbell

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of HUBB. Groupama Asset Managment lifted its holdings in Hubbell by 17.0% in the third 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 period. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hubbell in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hubbell during the third quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Hubbell in the second quarter worth $49,000. Finally, Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in Hubbell in the third quarter worth $58,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.16% of the company’s stock.

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.