Ituran Location and Control (NASDAQ:ITRN) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Ituran Location and Control (NASDAQ:ITRN) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Sunday.

Several other analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Loop Capital set a $57.00 target price on shares of Ituran Location and Control in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Ituran Location and Control in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Maxim Group assumed coverage on shares of Ituran Location and Control in a report on Thursday, March 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $70.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Ituran Location and Control from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $60.67.

Ituran Location and Control Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of ITRN opened at $50.98 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $46.60 and its 200-day moving average price is $41.31. Ituran Location and Control has a twelve month low of $30.06 and a twelve month high of $51.58. The stock has a market cap of $1.01 billion, a PE ratio of 17.52 and a beta of 0.68.

Ituran Location and Control (NASDAQ:ITRN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $93.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $93.30 million. Ituran Location and Control had a net margin of 16.15% and a return on equity of 27.27%.

Ituran Location and Control Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 30th will be issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 30th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 11.8%. This is a boost from Ituran Location and Control’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Ituran Location and Control’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 68.73%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ITRN. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its position in Ituran Location and Control by 257.4% during the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 629 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 453 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Ituran Location and Control by 50.1% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 656 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares in the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ituran Location and Control during the third quarter worth about $28,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its holdings in shares of Ituran Location and Control by 327.2% during the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,226 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 939 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Ituran Location and Control during the third quarter valued at about $47,000. 94.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Ituran Location and Control

Ituran Location and Control Ltd. is a provider of wireless vehicle tracking and stolen vehicle recovery services. The company leverages a combination of cellular and global positioning system (GPS) technologies to offer real-time monitoring and location-based solutions for private vehicle owners, fleet operators and insurance companies. Its core offerings include subscription-based tracking devices, centralized control centers and software platforms that enable clients to detect unauthorized vehicle use, dispatch recovery teams and manage fleet logistics.

Founded in 1994 in Israel, Ituran pioneered the use of wireless communications for security and telematics applications.