Pinnacle Associates Ltd. Purchases 34,014 Shares of Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI)

Pinnacle Associates Ltd. raised its stake in Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI - Free Report) by 9.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 398,372 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after purchasing an additional 34,014 shares during the period. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. owned 0.87% of Itron worth $42,550,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in Itron by 85.6% during the second quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 271 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the period. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in shares of Itron by 53.0% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 352 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Itron by 46.6% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 720 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $71,000 after purchasing an additional 229 shares during the period. CWM LLC grew its stake in Itron by 315.6% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 881 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $87,000 after buying an additional 669 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. bought a new position in Itron during the 2nd quarter worth $129,000. 96.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on ITRI shares. Stephens reissued an "equal weight" rating and set a $110.00 price target on shares of Itron in a report on Monday, August 5th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on shares of Itron from $110.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on Itron in a report on Thursday, September 5th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $133.00 price target on the stock. Guggenheim raised Itron from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $130.00 price objective for the company in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Itron from $115.00 to $123.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $119.67.

Insider Activity at Itron

In other news, SVP Donald L. Reeves III sold 4,210 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.00, for a total value of $425,210.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 16,269 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,643,169. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, SVP Donald L. Reeves III sold 4,210 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.00, for a total transaction of $425,210.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 16,269 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,643,169. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Joan S. Hooper sold 509 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.15, for a total transaction of $51,994.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 72,338 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,389,326.70. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 43,276 shares of company stock worth $4,515,846. 1.45% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Itron Price Performance

Shares of ITRI traded down $0.49 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $103.86. The company's stock had a trading volume of 481,353 shares, compared to its average volume of 513,830. Itron, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $56.11 and a fifty-two week high of $113.07. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $103.36 and a 200 day moving average price of $102.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.99, a PEG ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 3.16 and a quick ratio of 2.61.

Itron (NASDAQ:ITRI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $609.07 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $599.25 million. Itron had a return on equity of 16.42% and a net margin of 7.98%. Itron's revenue for the quarter was up 12.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.65 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Itron, Inc. will post 4.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Itron

Itron, Inc, a technology, solutions, and service company, provides end-to-end solutions that help manage energy, water, and smart city operations worldwide. It operates in three segments: Device Solutions, Networked Solutions, and Outcomes. The Device Solutions segment offers hardware products that are used for measurement, control, or sensing, such as standard gas, electricity, water, and communicating meters, as well as heat and allocation products.