KBR, Inc. (NYSE:KBR) Given Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Shares of KBR, Inc. (NYSE:KBR - Get Free Report) have been assigned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the seven brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $78.86.

A number of research analysts recently commented on KBR shares. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of KBR from $77.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. TD Cowen dropped their target price on KBR from $72.00 to $64.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. StockNews.com downgraded KBR from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Sunday, October 6th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $84.00 price target on shares of KBR in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, KeyCorp reduced their price objective on shares of KBR from $78.00 to $70.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday.

Institutional Trading of KBR

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Pier 88 Investment Partners LLC raised its position in shares of KBR by 25.9% in the 3rd quarter. Pier 88 Investment Partners LLC now owns 50,710 shares of the construction company's stock worth $3,303,000 after acquiring an additional 10,420 shares in the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new position in KBR in the third quarter valued at about $771,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of KBR by 14.5% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,416,531 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $167,876,000 after buying an additional 305,889 shares during the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of KBR in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,928,000. Finally, Versor Investments LP bought a new stake in shares of KBR in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,954,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.02% of the company's stock.

KBR Price Performance

NYSE KBR traded down $0.36 during trading on Thursday, hitting $57.45. 1,369,257 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,140,431. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. KBR has a 12-month low of $51.60 and a 12-month high of $72.60. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $60.79 and a 200-day simple moving average of $64.07. The company has a market capitalization of $7.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 0.85.

KBR (NYSE:KBR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The construction company reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.84. The firm had revenue of $1.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.95 billion. KBR had a net margin of 4.35% and a return on equity of 28.87%. KBR's revenue for the quarter was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.75 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that KBR will post 3.27 EPS for the current year.

KBR Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.04%. KBR's dividend payout ratio is presently 25.21%.

About KBR

KBR, Inc provides scientific, technology, and engineering solutions to governments and commercial customers worldwide. It operates through Government Solutions and Sustainable Technology Solutions segments. The Government Solutions segment offers life-cycle support solutions to defense, intelligence, space, aviation, and other programs and missions for military and other government agencies in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia.