Raymond James Financial Inc. Buys Shares of 180,130 Jacobs Solutions Inc. (NYSE:J)

Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Jacobs Solutions Inc. (NYSE:J) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 180,130 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,069,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Jacobs Solutions by 44.3% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 241 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP boosted its position in shares of Jacobs Solutions by 394.9% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 292 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 233 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new position in shares of Jacobs Solutions in the third quarter worth approximately $44,000. Assetmark Inc. boosted its position in shares of Jacobs Solutions by 42.7% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 334 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Jacobs Solutions by 215.7% in the fourth quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 363 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 248 shares during the period. 85.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Jacobs Solutions Price Performance

NYSE:J opened at $122.50 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The company has a market capitalization of $15.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.26, a P/E/G ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.77. Jacobs Solutions Inc. has a 12 month low of $110.95 and a 12 month high of $150.54. The business’s 50-day moving average is $131.75 and its 200 day moving average is $137.67.

Jacobs Solutions (NYSE:J) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.33 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.29 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $2.93 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.92 billion. Jacobs Solutions had a return on equity of 14.87% and a net margin of 4.28%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.45 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Jacobs Solutions Inc. will post 6.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Jacobs Solutions announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, February 4th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Jacobs Solutions Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. This is an increase from Jacobs Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.04%. Jacobs Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is 26.39%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on J. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Jacobs Solutions from $154.00 to $148.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Jacobs Solutions from $161.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Benchmark lowered shares of Jacobs Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $152.00 price target on shares of Jacobs Solutions in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Jacobs Solutions from $137.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $153.63.

Jacobs Solutions Profile

Jacobs Solutions Inc provides consulting, technical, engineering, scientific, and project delivery services for the government and private sectors in the United States, Europe, Canada, India, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, the Middle East, and Africa. It operates through Critical Mission Solutions, People & Places Solutions, Divergent Solutions, and PA Consulting segments.