Sanford C. Bernstein Begins Coverage on Hubbell (NYSE:HUBB)

Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Hubbell (NYSE:HUBB) in a report released on Tuesday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage issued an outperform rating and a $535.00 price objective on the industrial products company’s stock.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Mizuho upped their price objective on Hubbell from $450.00 to $490.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Hubbell from $445.00 to $455.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $450.00 price objective on shares of Hubbell in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Hubbell from $400.00 to $402.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Hubbell from $407.00 to $445.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $445.56.

Hubbell Stock Performance

Shares of Hubbell stock traded down $5.14 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $466.98. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 483,089 shares, compared to its average volume of 443,839. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $426.63 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $397.42. Hubbell has a fifty-two week low of $278.62 and a fifty-two week high of $481.35. The firm has a market cap of $25.07 billion, a PE ratio of 33.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 0.90. 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 issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $4.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.47 by $0.02. Hubbell had a net margin of 13.33% and a return on equity of 28.81%. The company had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.48 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.95 EPS. Hubbell’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Hubbell will post 16.47 EPS for the current year.

Hubbell Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th will be issued a dividend of $1.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $5.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.13%. This is an increase from Hubbell’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. Hubbell’s payout ratio is currently 35.16%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HUBB. Mizuho Securities USA LLC raised its stake in shares of Hubbell by 192,421.1% during the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 7,980,000 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,418,233,000 after buying an additional 7,975,855 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in Hubbell by 42,735.0% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,919,865 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $8,223,740,000 after acquiring an additional 1,915,383 shares during the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc raised its position in Hubbell by 53.8% during the second quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 922,801 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $336,984,000 after acquiring an additional 322,728 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Hubbell by 16.7% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,035,596 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $743,970,000 after purchasing an additional 291,850 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in shares of Hubbell by 16.9% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,980,456 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $821,989,000 after purchasing an additional 286,134 shares in the last quarter. 88.16% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Hubbell

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.