Intech Investment Management LLC Makes New Investment in AZZ Inc. (NYSE:AZZ)

Intech Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in AZZ Inc. (NYSE:AZZ) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 3,836 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $296,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AZZ. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in AZZ in the first quarter worth about $32,000. CWM LLC lifted its stake in AZZ by 69.4% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 459 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 188 shares during the last quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in AZZ in the second quarter worth about $72,000. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in AZZ by 38.6% in the second quarter. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 951 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 265 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC bought a new stake in AZZ in the first quarter worth about $77,000. Institutional investors own 90.93% of the company’s stock.

AZZ Stock Performance

Shares of AZZ stock opened at $82.29 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $2.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 76.91, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.24. The company’s 50 day moving average is $78.82 and its 200 day moving average is $78.43. The company has a quick ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36. AZZ Inc. has a 52-week low of $43.48 and a 52-week high of $88.67.

AZZ (NYSE:AZZ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.30 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $413.21 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $403.25 million. AZZ had a net margin of 7.22% and a return on equity of 17.08%. AZZ’s revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.14 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that AZZ Inc. will post 4.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at AZZ

In related news, COO Bryan Lee Stovall sold 14,545 shares of AZZ stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.79, for a total transaction of $1,233,270.55. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 20,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,695,800. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other AZZ news, insider Tara D. Mackey sold 331 shares of AZZ stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.50, for a total value of $27,638.50. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 34,229 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,858,121.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Bryan Lee Stovall sold 14,545 shares of AZZ stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.79, for a total transaction of $1,233,270.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 20,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,695,800. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Noble Financial raised shares of AZZ from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $95.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Tuesday, June 11th. Baird R W raised shares of AZZ to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of AZZ in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. B. Riley raised their target price on shares of AZZ from $89.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Evercore ISI started coverage on shares of AZZ in a research report on Friday, June 14th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $90.00 target price on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $95.80.

AZZ Profile

AZZ Inc provides hot-dip galvanizing and coil coating solutions in North America. It offers metal finishing solutions for corrosion protection, including hot-dip galvanizing, spin galvanizing, powder coating, anodizing, and plating to steel fabrication and other industries, as well as to fabricators or manufacturers that provide services to the transmission and distribution, bridge and highway, petrochemical, and general industrial markets; and original equipment manufacturers.