Gamco Investors INC. ET AL Trims Stock Position in AZZ Inc. $AZZ

Gamco Investors INC. ET AL decreased its holdings in AZZ Inc. (NYSE:AZZ) by 27.3% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 363,371 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 136,194 shares during the quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL’s holdings in AZZ were worth $45,469,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in AZZ by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,357,370 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $359,843,000 after buying an additional 80,099 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors boosted its stake in shares of AZZ by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 2,009,812 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $215,412,000 after acquiring an additional 48,565 shares during the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of AZZ by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,783,663 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $191,174,000 after acquiring an additional 15,744 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of AZZ by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,182,140 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $126,706,000 after acquiring an additional 49,509 shares during the period. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased its stake in shares of AZZ by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 771,358 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $82,674,000 after purchasing an additional 51,463 shares in the last quarter. 90.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AZZ has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen cut AZZ from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, July 12th. B. Riley Financial boosted their price target on AZZ from $169.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Weiss Ratings cut AZZ from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on AZZ from $138.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on AZZ from $125.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, AZZ has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $155.25.

AZZ Stock Performance

AZZ opened at $150.20 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $146.52 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $136.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.92 and a quick ratio of 1.39. The firm has a market cap of $4.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.90 and a beta of 1.11. AZZ Inc. has a 1-year low of $92.98 and a 1-year high of $162.20.

AZZ (NYSE:AZZ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 8th. The industrial products company reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.80 by $0.05. AZZ had a net margin of 11.83% and a return on equity of 14.18%. The firm had revenue of $448.53 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $434.58 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.78 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. AZZ has set its FY 2027 guidance at 6.750-7.150 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that AZZ Inc. will post 6.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AZZ Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 9th will be paid a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 9th. This is a boost from AZZ’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. AZZ’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.63%.

AZZ Profile

AZZ Inc, incorporated in 1956 and headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, is a leading provider of galvanizing and metal finishing solutions alongside electrical equipment and services. The company supports a diverse range of industries—such as energy, infrastructure, heavy equipment and general industrial markets—by delivering corrosion protection and high-performance electrical solutions designed for demanding environments.

AZZ operates two primary business segments. The Global Coatings & Services segment offers hot-dip galvanizing, metal finishing, painting, powder coating and related value-added services to steel fabricators and original equipment manufacturers.