First Trust Advisors LP Buys 226,272 Shares of Jacobs Solutions Inc. (NYSE:J)

First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Jacobs Solutions Inc. (NYSE:J - Free Report) by 43.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 741,342 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 226,272 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP owned about 0.60% of Jacobs Solutions worth $99,058,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of J. Holcombe Financial Inc. bought a new position in Jacobs Solutions during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $267,000. GeoWealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Jacobs Solutions by 29.2% during the fourth quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 1,601 shares of the company's stock valued at $214,000 after acquiring an additional 362 shares in the last quarter. Commerce Bank increased its holdings in shares of Jacobs Solutions by 11.8% during the fourth quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 7,403 shares of the company's stock valued at $989,000 after acquiring an additional 780 shares in the last quarter. Gratus Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Jacobs Solutions by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Gratus Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,276 shares of the company's stock worth $839,000 after purchasing an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP boosted its stake in Jacobs Solutions by 82.7% in the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 10,373 shares of the company's stock worth $1,386,000 after purchasing an additional 4,695 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.65% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on J. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of Jacobs Solutions from $141.00 to $130.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of Jacobs Solutions from $154.00 to $148.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price objective on Jacobs Solutions from $161.00 to $151.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Jacobs Solutions presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $150.86.

Jacobs Solutions Stock Performance

J traded down $0.66 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $121.67. 527,033 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 779,929. The company's fifty day moving average price is $121.47 and its 200-day moving average price is $132.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. Jacobs Solutions Inc. has a 52-week low of $106.23 and a 52-week high of $156.31.

Jacobs Solutions (NYSE:J - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.29 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $2.93 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.92 billion. Jacobs Solutions had a return on equity of 14.87% and a net margin of 4.28%. Jacobs Solutions's revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.45 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Jacobs Solutions Inc. will post 6.05 EPS for the current year.

Jacobs Solutions Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st were given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.05%. This is a positive change from Jacobs Solutions's previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. Jacobs Solutions's payout ratio is 26.39%.

Jacobs Solutions declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, February 4th that allows the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Jacobs Solutions Profile

Jacobs Solutions Inc provides consulting, technical, engineering, scientific, and project delivery services for the government and private sectors in the United States, Europe, Canada, India, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, the Middle East, and Africa. It operates through Critical Mission Solutions, People & Places Solutions, Divergent Solutions, and PA Consulting segments.