Van ECK Associates Corp Boosts Stake in Hubbell Incorporated (NYSE:HUBB)

Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in shares of Hubbell Incorporated (NYSE:HUBB) by 11.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,741 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 966 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Hubbell were worth $4,332,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of HUBB. IFG Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Hubbell during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $475,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Hubbell by 51.3% in the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 3,693 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,347,000 after acquiring an additional 1,252 shares in the last quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. boosted its stake in Hubbell by 24.6% during the 2nd quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 6,873 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,511,000 after acquiring an additional 1,359 shares during the last quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale grew its holdings in Hubbell by 2.9% during the 1st quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 99,227 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $40,731,000 after acquiring an additional 2,822 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hubbell in the 1st quarter worth about $582,000. 88.16% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on HUBB shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Hubbell from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $431.00 to $441.00 in a research note on Friday, September 6th. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Hubbell in a report on Tuesday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $535.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut Hubbell from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $385.00 to $454.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $450.00 target price on shares of Hubbell in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Hubbell from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $445.56.

Hubbell Stock Up 0.2 %

Hubbell stock opened at $467.94 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.66. Hubbell Incorporated has a one year low of $281.45 and a one year high of $481.35. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $427.99 and a 200-day simple moving average of $397.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 0.90.

Hubbell (NYSE:HUBB) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $4.49 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.47 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.48 billion. Hubbell had a net margin of 13.33% and a return on equity of 28.81%. Hubbell’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.95 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Hubbell Incorporated will post 16.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Hubbell Increases Dividend

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

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.