ITT Inc. (NYSE:ITT) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of ITT Inc. (NYSE:ITT) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eight research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seven have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $158.57.

Several research analysts have recently commented on ITT shares. Citigroup decreased their price objective on ITT from $181.00 to $150.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on ITT from $179.00 to $148.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of ITT from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com upgraded ITT from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, KeyCorp lowered their price target on ITT from $170.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th.

ITT Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ITT opened at $126.88 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.14, a PEG ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 1.36. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $135.38 and its 200-day moving average price is $144.21. ITT has a one year low of $105.64 and a one year high of $161.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 1.40 and a quick ratio of 0.96.

ITT (NYSE:ITT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The conglomerate reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.02. ITT had a net margin of 14.27% and a return on equity of 18.03%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that ITT will post 6.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ITT Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 6th were given a $0.351 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 6th. This is a positive change from ITT’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.11%. ITT’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.22%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ITT

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of ITT. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of ITT in the 4th quarter worth approximately $134,433,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of ITT in the fourth quarter worth $73,762,000. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in ITT by 63.1% in the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 931,240 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $133,056,000 after buying an additional 360,123 shares during the period. Select Equity Group L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of ITT by 7.7% during the 4th quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 4,564,926 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $652,237,000 after buying an additional 326,947 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of ITT by 13,886.0% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 214,406 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $27,693,000 after purchasing an additional 212,873 shares during the period. 91.59% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About ITT

ITT Inc, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells engineered critical components and customized technology solutions for the transportation, industrial, and energy markets in the United States and internationally. The Motion Technologies segment manufactures brake pads, shims, shock absorbers, and energy absorption components; and sealing technologies primarily for the transportation industry, including passenger cars, trucks, light- and heavy-duty commercial and military vehicles, buses, and trains.