Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC Sells 73,970 Shares of AZZ Inc. (NYSE:AZZ)

Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC cut its stake in shares of AZZ Inc. (NYSE:AZZ - Free Report) by 47.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 80,540 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 73,970 shares during the period. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.27% of AZZ worth $6,653,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Harvey Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of AZZ by 1.8% during the third quarter. Harvey Partners LLC now owns 666,000 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $55,018,000 after acquiring an additional 12,000 shares during the period. Centiva Capital LP grew its position in AZZ by 64.8% during the 3rd quarter. Centiva Capital LP now owns 6,650 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $549,000 after purchasing an additional 2,614 shares in the last quarter. Atom Investors LP acquired a new stake in AZZ during the 3rd quarter valued at $391,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of AZZ by 225.1% in the third quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 2,832 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $234,000 after purchasing an additional 1,961 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Scalar Gauge Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AZZ in the third quarter valued at $1,900,000. 90.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AZZ Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE:AZZ traded up $1.46 during trading on Friday, reaching $95.40. 144,351 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 227,255. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $83.63 and a 200 day simple moving average of $80.85. The company has a quick ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 1.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. AZZ Inc. has a 1-year low of $50.27 and a 1-year high of $97.98. The firm has a market cap of $2.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 73.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.30.

AZZ (NYSE:AZZ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 9th. The industrial products company reported $1.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.32 by $0.05. AZZ had a return on equity of 16.88% and a net margin of 7.63%. The firm had revenue of $409.01 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $409.50 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.27 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that AZZ Inc. will post 5.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AZZ Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Friday, October 18th were issued a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 18th. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.71%. AZZ's dividend payout ratio is currently 53.13%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on AZZ from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AZZ currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $96.80.

AZZ Company Profile

AZZ Inc provides hot-dip galvanizing and coil coating solutions in North America. It offers metal finishing solutions for corrosion protection, including hot-dip galvanizing, spin galvanizing, powder coating, anodizing, and plating to steel fabrication and other industries, as well as to fabricators or manufacturers that provide services to the transmission and distribution, bridge and highway, petrochemical, and general industrial markets; and original equipment manufacturers.