Hillenbrand (NYSE:HI) Shares Gap Up - Should You Buy?

Hillenbrand, Inc. (NYSE:HI - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $33.33, but opened at $34.24. Hillenbrand shares last traded at $33.62, with a volume of 31,871 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. KeyCorp decreased their target price on Hillenbrand from $45.00 to $40.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. StockNews.com cut shares of Hillenbrand from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, DA Davidson reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $33.00 target price on shares of Hillenbrand in a research note on Friday, November 15th.

Hillenbrand Trading Up 0.3 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.44 billion, a P/E ratio of -11.06 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $32.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $31.53.

Hillenbrand (NYSE:HI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.54 by $0.02. Hillenbrand had a positive return on equity of 15.00% and a negative net margin of 7.12%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.69 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Hillenbrand, Inc. will post 2.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Hillenbrand Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th were given a dividend of $0.225 per share. This is an increase from Hillenbrand's previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $0.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.59%. Hillenbrand's dividend payout ratio is currently -28.66%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hillenbrand

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HI. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its holdings in Hillenbrand by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 80,208 shares of the company's stock worth $2,469,000 after purchasing an additional 387 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its position in shares of Hillenbrand by 32.2% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,263 shares of the company's stock worth $63,000 after buying an additional 551 shares during the period. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hillenbrand by 3.8% during the third quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 16,657 shares of the company's stock worth $463,000 after buying an additional 603 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Hillenbrand by 107.5% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,185 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 614 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can lifted its stake in Hillenbrand by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 13,039 shares of the company's stock valued at $401,000 after acquiring an additional 746 shares in the last quarter. 89.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hillenbrand Company Profile

Hillenbrand, Inc operates as an industrial company in the United States and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Advanced Process Solutions and Molding Technology Solutions. The Advanced Process Solutions segment designs, engineers, manufactures, markets, and services process and material handling equipment and systems comprising compounding, extrusion, and material handling equipment, equipment system design services, as well as offers mixing technology, ingredient automation, and portion process; and provides screening and separating equipment for various industries, including plastics, food and pharmaceuticals, chemicals, fertilizers, minerals, energy, wastewater treatment, forest products, and other general industrials.