First Trust Advisors LP Acquires 183,365 Shares of Trimble Inc. $TRMB

First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in Trimble Inc. (NASDAQ:TRMB) by 39.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 652,402 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after purchasing an additional 183,365 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned approximately 0.27% of Trimble worth $49,570,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Generation Investment Management LLP lifted its position in shares of Trimble by 19.1% during the 2nd quarter. Generation Investment Management LLP now owns 9,019,663 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $685,314,000 after buying an additional 1,449,315 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its stake in Trimble by 26.1% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 6,978,106 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $458,113,000 after acquiring an additional 1,445,851 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners lifted its holdings in shares of Trimble by 14.4% during the second quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,170,179 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $318,285,000 after acquiring an additional 525,214 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Trimble by 6.5% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,089,301 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $310,705,000 after acquiring an additional 248,751 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of Trimble by 19.8% in the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,084,937 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $202,526,000 after purchasing an additional 510,509 shares in the last quarter. 93.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Trimble Price Performance

NASDAQ TRMB opened at $81.77 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.00. The stock has a market cap of $19.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.01, a PEG ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 1.60. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $79.49 and a 200 day simple moving average of $79.06. Trimble Inc. has a 52-week low of $52.91 and a 52-week high of $87.50.

Trimble (NASDAQ:TRMB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 12th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter. Trimble had a net margin of 9.93% and a return on equity of 10.73%. The company had revenue of $856.50 million during the quarter. Analysts anticipate that Trimble Inc. will post 2.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Trimble announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Friday, December 5th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the scientific and technical instruments company to purchase up to 5.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on TRMB. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $97.00 price target on shares of Trimble in a report on Friday, November 7th. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on shares of Trimble in a report on Thursday, November 13th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $94.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Trimble from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 19th. Zacks Research raised Trimble from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $102.00 price target on shares of Trimble in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $94.18.

Insider Transactions at Trimble

In related news, Director James Calvin Dalton sold 616 shares of Trimble stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.99, for a total value of $50,505.84. Following the sale, the director owned 13,193 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,081,694.07. This trade represents a 4.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Kaigham Gabriel sold 1,718 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.00, for a total value of $139,158.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 15,170 shares in the company, valued at $1,228,770. The trade was a 10.17% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 24,699 shares of company stock worth $1,955,304. Company insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Trimble Profile

Trimble Inc provides technology solutions that enable professionals and field mobile workers to enhance or transform their work processes worldwide. The company's Buildings and Infrastructure segment offers field and office software for project design and visualization; systems to guide and control construction equipment; software for 3D design and data sharing; systems to monitor, track, and manage assets, equipment, and workers; software to share and communicate data; program management solutions for construction owners; 3D conceptual design and modeling software; building information modeling software; enterprise resource planning, project management, and project collaboration solutions; integrated site layout and measurement systems; cost estimating, scheduling, and project controls solutions; and applications for sub-contractors and trades.