Swiss National Bank Trims Stake in Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI)

Swiss National Bank reduced its position in shares of Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI) by 1.2% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 88,500 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 1,100 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank’s holdings in Itron were worth $9,609,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Intech Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Itron by 105.9% during the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 19,444 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $2,077,000 after purchasing an additional 10,001 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Itron by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,074,940 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $114,835,000 after acquiring an additional 5,630 shares during the period. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Itron by 78.3% in the 4th quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 6,083 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $660,000 after acquiring an additional 2,671 shares during the period. Systematic Financial Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Itron by 12.2% in the 3rd quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 134,362 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $14,351,000 after acquiring an additional 14,590 shares during the period. Finally, Merit Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Itron in the 4th quarter valued at $301,000. 96.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on ITRI. StockNews.com downgraded Itron from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, March 1st. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on Itron from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Itron from $124.00 to $131.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Guggenheim cut their price target on Itron from $135.00 to $133.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price objective on Itron from $130.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $127.64.

Itron Stock Performance

Shares of ITRI opened at $105.76 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $104.00 and a two-hundred day moving average of $107.56. Itron, Inc. has a one year low of $87.91 and a one year high of $124.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 2.83 and a current ratio of 3.36. The stock has a market cap of $4.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.67, a P/E/G ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.49.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Mary C. Hemmingsen sold 750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.27, for a total value of $80,452.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 5,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $603,930.10. The trade was a 11.76 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Christopher E. Ware sold 648 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.90, for a total value of $60,199.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 20,326 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,888,285.40. This trade represents a 3.09 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 4,037 shares of company stock valued at $385,815. 1.45% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Itron Company Profile

Itron, Inc, a technology, solutions, and service company, provides end-to-end solutions that help manage energy, water, and smart city operations worldwide. It operates in three segments: Device Solutions, Networked Solutions, and Outcomes. The Device Solutions segment offers hardware products that are used for measurement, control, or sensing, such as standard gas, electricity, water, and communicating meters, as well as heat and allocation products.