Xylem (NYSE:XYL) Sets New 12-Month Low – Here’s Why

Xylem Inc. (NYSE:XYL) shares hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $112.44 and last traded at $112.84, with a volume of 535967 shares. The stock had previously closed at $119.05.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

XYL has been the topic of several recent research reports. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Xylem from $139.00 to $148.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Citigroup downgraded shares of Xylem from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on shares of Xylem from $166.00 to $150.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Wolfe Research reaffirmed a “peer perform” rating on shares of Xylem in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Xylem currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $149.89.

Xylem Stock Down 6.7 %

The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $125.59 and a 200 day simple moving average of $125.65. The company has a market capitalization of $27.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.43, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 1.76 and a quick ratio of 1.33.

Xylem (NYSE:XYL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The industrial products company reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.06. Xylem had a return on equity of 9.96% and a net margin of 10.40%. The firm had revenue of $2.30 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.18 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.99 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Xylem Inc. will post 4.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Xylem Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.44%. This is a boost from Xylem’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. Xylem’s payout ratio is 43.72%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Xylem

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its stake in shares of Xylem by 12.8% in the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 10,610 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,433,000 after acquiring an additional 1,200 shares in the last quarter. Paloma Partners Management Co acquired a new stake in Xylem in the 3rd quarter valued at about $202,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Xylem in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,550,000. Hilltop Holdings Inc. grew its position in shares of Xylem by 66.2% during the third quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 8,305 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,121,000 after buying an additional 3,308 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Xylem by 2.0% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 85,930 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $11,601,000 after buying an additional 1,725 shares in the last quarter. 87.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Xylem

Xylem Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the design, manufacture, and servicing of engineered products and solutions worldwide. It operates through four segments: Water Infrastructure, Applied Water, Measurement & Control Solutions, and Integrated Solutions and Services. The Water Infrastructure segment offers products, including water, storm water, and wastewater pumps; controls and systems; filtration, disinfection, and biological treatment equipment; and mobile dewatering equipment and rental services under the ADI, Flygt, Godwin, Sanitaire, Magneto, Neptune Benson, Ionpure, Leopold, Wedeco, and Xylem Vue brands.