American Century Companies Inc. Cuts Stock Holdings in Hubbell Incorporated (NYSE:HUBB)

American Century Companies Inc. cut its stake in shares of Hubbell Incorporated (NYSE:HUBB) by 1.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 142,256 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,530 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc.’s holdings in Hubbell were worth $59,590,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in Hubbell by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,826,327 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,183,920,000 after acquiring an additional 129,490 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Hubbell by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,092,215 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $896,200,000 after purchasing an additional 22,507 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Hubbell by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,254,905 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $535,681,000 after purchasing an additional 8,278 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Hubbell by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 350,367 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $146,765,000 after purchasing an additional 3,586 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Hubbell by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 311,648 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $130,546,000 after purchasing an additional 8,747 shares in the last quarter. 88.16% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hubbell Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE HUBB opened at $354.28 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.64. Hubbell Incorporated has a 1 year low of $330.32 and a 1 year high of $481.35. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $385.55 and its 200-day simple moving average is $419.79. The firm has a market cap of $19.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.67, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.94.

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

Hubbell declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the industrial products company to buy up to 2.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Hubbell Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a dividend of $1.32 per share. This represents a $5.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. Hubbell’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.77%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Alyssa R. Flynn sold 1,164 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $389.06, for a total value 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 trade represents a 21.20 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.66% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Hubbell from $475.00 to $422.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of Hubbell from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $493.00 to $473.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. StockNews.com raised Hubbell from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Hubbell from $455.00 to $450.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hubbell has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $464.88.

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.