Needham & Company LLC Begins Coverage on Itron (NASDAQ:ITRI)

Needham & Company LLC initiated coverage on shares of Itron (NASDAQ:ITRI) in a report released on Friday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The firm set a “buy” rating and a $124.00 price target on the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock. Needham & Company LLC’s target price points to a potential upside of 35.89% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Weiss Ratings downgraded Itron from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Guggenheim set a $155.00 price target on Itron in a report on Friday, February 13th. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Itron from $125.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Wall Street Zen lowered Itron from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, Johnson Rice raised Itron from an “accumulate” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, January 5th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $137.10.

Itron Stock Performance

NASDAQ:ITRI opened at $91.25 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.80 and a quick ratio of 1.56. The firm has a market cap of $4.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.44. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $97.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $107.84. Itron has a 1-year low of $88.57 and a 1-year high of $142.00.

Itron (NASDAQ:ITRI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 17th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $2.46 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.27. The company had revenue of $571.66 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $561.31 million. Itron had a net margin of 12.72% and a return on equity of 20.04%. Itron’s quarterly revenue was down 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.35 EPS. Itron has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.200-1.300 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 5.750-6.250 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Itron will post 5.33 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Donald L. Reeves III sold 519 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.84, for a total value of $50,778.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 29,951 shares in the company, valued at $2,930,405.84. This trade represents a 1.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Joan S. Hooper sold 3,533 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.92, for a total transaction of $338,885.36. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 118,275 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,344,938. This trade represents a 2.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 51,180 shares of company stock valued at $5,085,475 in the last three months. 1.45% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Itron

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Itron during the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. Employees Retirement System of Texas purchased a new position in Itron in the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in shares of Itron by 112.4% during the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 274 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares during the last quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. purchased a new stake in shares of Itron during the third quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC acquired a new position in shares of Itron in the third quarter valued at approximately $42,000. 96.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Itron Company Profile

Itron, Inc (NASDAQ: ITRI) is a global technology company that develops innovative solutions to measure, manage and analyze the use of energy and water. Its comprehensive portfolio includes smart meters, data collection devices, communication networks and advanced software applications designed to optimize utility operations and foster sustainable resource management. The company’s offerings enable utilities and cities to accurately monitor consumption patterns, streamline billing processes and improve grid reliability.

Itron’s product lineup spans a range of hardware and software solutions, from residential and commercial smart meters to meter data management systems (MDMS), networked communication platforms and analytics tools.