AECOM (NYSE:ACM) Reaches New 1-Year High - What's Next?

AECOM (NYSE:ACM - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $118.56 and last traded at $116.74, with a volume of 1268474 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $116.74.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of AECOM from $110.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Barclays raised their price target on AECOM from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on AECOM from $113.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of AECOM in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $130.00 target price for the company. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of AECOM from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Sunday, October 27th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, AECOM presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $119.38.

AECOM Price Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $107.29 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $96.73. The company has a market cap of $15.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.13.

AECOM (NYSE:ACM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, November 18th. The construction company reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.24 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.86 billion. AECOM had a net margin of 2.50% and a return on equity of 25.46%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.01 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that AECOM will post 5.1 EPS for the current year.

AECOM Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.89%. This is an increase from AECOM's previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. AECOM's dividend payout ratio is currently 29.73%.

AECOM declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Monday, November 18th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the construction company to repurchase up to 6.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other AECOM news, CFO Gaurav Kapoor sold 42,400 shares of AECOM stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.34, for a total transaction of $4,890,416.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 31,228 shares in the company, valued at $3,601,837.52. The trade was a 57.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AECOM

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ACM. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its stake in AECOM by 12.5% in the second quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 10,621 shares of the construction company's stock worth $936,000 after buying an additional 1,180 shares in the last quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd purchased a new stake in AECOM during the first quarter valued at about $741,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in shares of AECOM by 7.4% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 87,301 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $8,564,000 after buying an additional 6,003 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of AECOM by 24.3% in the second quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 203,281 shares of the construction company's stock worth $17,917,000 after buying an additional 39,801 shares during the period. Finally, Swedbank AB increased its holdings in shares of AECOM by 13.6% in the second quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 72,823 shares of the construction company's stock worth $6,419,000 after buying an additional 8,694 shares during the period. 85.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AECOM Company Profile

AECOM, together with its subsidiaries, provides professional infrastructure consulting services worldwide. It operates in three segments: Americas, International, and AECOM Capital. The company offers planning, consulting, architectural and engineering design, construction and program management, and investment and development services to public and private clients.