Itron (NASDAQ:ITRI) Shares Up 6.5% Following Analyst Upgrade

Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI) shares shot up 6.5% during trading on Monday after Stephens upgraded the stock from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating. Stephens now has a $130.00 price target on the stock. Itron traded as high as $107.03 and last traded at $106.8510. 1,751,242 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 165% from the average session volume of 660,389 shares. The stock had previously closed at $100.33.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Oppenheimer set a $145.00 target price on Itron and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Zacks Research upgraded Itron from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $155.00 target price (up from $133.00) on shares of Itron in a research report on Monday, July 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Itron from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $118.00 price objective (down from $137.00) on shares of Itron in a research report on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Itron currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $139.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Donald L. Reeves III sold 547 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.31, for a total value of $68,544.57. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 19,604 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,456,577.24. This represents a 2.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Joan S. Hooper sold 970 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.31, for a total value of $121,550.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 88,394 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,076,652.14. The trade was a 1.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 3,037 shares of company stock valued at $380,566. Insiders own 1.45% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Itron

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. AlphaQuest LLC increased its stake in Itron by 218.3% in the third quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 10,996 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $1,370,000 after purchasing an additional 7,541 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System increased its stake in Itron by 1.4% in the third quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 13,478 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $1,679,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the last quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG acquired a new position in Itron in the third quarter valued at $4,673,000. Copia Wealth Management acquired a new position in Itron in the third quarter valued at $92,000. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. acquired a new position in Itron in the third quarter valued at $56,000. 96.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Itron Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $4.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a 50 day moving average of $124.32 and a 200 day moving average of $123.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

Itron (NASDAQ:ITRI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.54 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $581.63 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $578.49 million. Itron had a return on equity of 19.69% and a net margin of 11.05%.The firm’s revenue was down 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.84 earnings per share. Itron has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.840-6.940 EPS. Q4 2025 guidance at 2.150-2.250 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Itron, Inc. will post 5.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Itron

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.