Northwest Pipe (NASDAQ:NWPX) Cut to “Hold” at StockNews.com

Northwest Pipe (NASDAQ:NWPX) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday.

Separately, Northland Securities increased their price target on shares of Northwest Pipe from $40.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd.

Northwest Pipe Trading Down 0.7 %

Northwest Pipe stock traded down $0.34 during trading on Monday, reaching $45.13. 50,159 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 43,138. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $41.55 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $36.71. The company has a market capitalization of $447.46 million, a P/E ratio of 18.96, a PEG ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 3.06 and a quick ratio of 2.19. Northwest Pipe has a 52-week low of $25.67 and a 52-week high of $46.25.

Northwest Pipe (NASDAQ:NWPX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The industrial products company reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.19. Northwest Pipe had a return on equity of 7.34% and a net margin of 5.33%. The business had revenue of $129.51 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $119.76 million. On average, equities research analysts expect that Northwest Pipe will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Northwest Pipe

In other Northwest Pipe news, VP Megan A. Kendrick sold 1,000 shares of Northwest Pipe stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.37, for a total transaction of $42,370.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 10,725 shares in the company, valued at $454,418.25. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, VP Megan A. Kendrick sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.37, for a total transaction of $42,370.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 10,725 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $454,418.25. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Miles Brittain sold 4,500 shares of Northwest Pipe stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.90, for a total value of $188,550.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 25,858 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,083,450.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 3.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Northwest Pipe

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NWPX. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in Northwest Pipe by 4.7% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 13,309 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $462,000 after purchasing an additional 598 shares in the last quarter. Foundry Partners LLC raised its holdings in Northwest Pipe by 0.8% in the second quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 175,945 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,977,000 after acquiring an additional 1,340 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its stake in Northwest Pipe by 9.7% in the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 17,029 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $591,000 after acquiring an additional 1,507 shares during the last quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC lifted its stake in Northwest Pipe by 120.2% in the first quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 3,462 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $120,000 after acquiring an additional 1,890 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in Northwest Pipe by 4.2% during the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 56,226 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,950,000 after acquiring an additional 2,281 shares in the last quarter. 80.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Northwest Pipe

Northwest Pipe Company, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and supply of water-related infrastructure products in North America. It operates in two segments, Engineered Steel Pressure Pipe (SPP) and Precast Infrastructure and Engineered Systems (Precast). The SPP segment offers large-diameter and high-pressure steel pipeline systems for use in water infrastructure applications, which are primarily related to drinking water systems.