Powell Industries (NASDAQ:POWL) Upgraded by Zacks Research to Strong-Buy Rating

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Powell Industries (NASDAQ:POWL) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their target price on Powell Industries from $142.33 to $160.33 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Texas Capital upgraded Powell Industries to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 27th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Powell Industries in a report on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen cut Powell Industries from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 7th. Finally, Glj Research initiated coverage on Powell Industries in a report on Thursday, March 5th. They set a “hold” rating and a $150.00 price target for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $142.33.

Powell Industries Stock Up 8.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:POWL opened at $218.07 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $178.61 and a two-hundred day moving average of $137.51. The stock has a market cap of $2.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.17, a PEG ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.81. Powell Industries has a 52-week low of $51.49 and a 52-week high of $221.66.

Powell Industries (NASDAQ:POWL) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The industrial products company reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $251.18 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $255.34 million. Powell Industries had a return on equity of 30.64% and a net margin of 16.82%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.95 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Powell Industries will post 13.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Powell Industries Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 18th were paid a dividend of $0.09 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 18th. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.2%. Powell Industries’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.02%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Brett Alan Cope sold 4,440 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.27, for a total transaction of $747,104.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 507,873 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $85,458,096.80. This represents a 0.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Thomas W. Powell sold 149,334 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.41, for a total value of $25,000,004.94. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 1,796,082 shares in the company, valued at approximately $300,682,087.62. The trade was a 7.68% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 244,248 shares of company stock worth $43,496,270 in the last quarter. Insiders own 2.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Powell Industries

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of POWL. Greenline Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Powell Industries during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Avanza Fonder AB acquired a new position in Powell Industries during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. State of Wyoming acquired a new position in Powell Industries during the 2nd quarter worth about $33,000. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its stake in Powell Industries by 126.0% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 113 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Corp acquired a new position in Powell Industries during the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.77% of the company’s stock.

About Powell Industries

Powell Industries, Inc is an industrial electrical engineering company specializing in the design, manufacture and integration of customized power control and distribution solutions. The firm’s offerings range from medium‐voltage switchgear and power control centers to bus duct, motor control centers and specialty transformers. Powell also provides automation systems, protective relaying, metering, supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) platforms, and turnkey engineering services to help clients manage critical power infrastructure.

Serving the oil and gas, petrochemical, refining, utility, mining and industrial sectors, Powell’s products are engineered to meet demanding performance, safety and reliability requirements.