The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Reduces Holdings in AECOM (NYSE:ACM)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company trimmed its position in AECOM (NYSE:ACM - Free Report) by 5.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 109,423 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 5,827 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 0.08% of AECOM worth $11,300,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC boosted its position in shares of AECOM by 5.5% during the second quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 2,339,185 shares of the construction company's stock worth $206,176,000 after buying an additional 122,015 shares during the period. Impax Asset Management Group plc raised its stake in AECOM by 15.5% in the 2nd quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 1,752,487 shares of the construction company's stock worth $154,464,000 after purchasing an additional 235,350 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in AECOM by 18.8% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,628,924 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $143,573,000 after purchasing an additional 258,250 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale increased its stake in AECOM by 67.8% during the 2nd quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 808,192 shares of the construction company's stock worth $71,897,000 after acquiring an additional 326,423 shares during the period. Finally, Citigroup Inc. raised its stake in AECOM by 5.7% in the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 585,174 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $60,431,000 after purchasing an additional 31,299 shares in the last quarter. 85.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AECOM Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ACM traded down $1.31 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $114.63. The company had a trading volume of 368,831 shares, compared to its average volume of 805,446. The company has a fifty day moving average of $108.19 and a two-hundred day moving average of $97.31. The company has a market cap of $15.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.15, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.13. AECOM has a 12-month low of $82.23 and a 12-month high of $118.56.

AECOM (NYSE:ACM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 18th. The construction company reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.24 by $0.03. AECOM had a return on equity of 25.46% and a net margin of 2.50%. The business had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.86 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.01 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that AECOM will post 5.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AECOM declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Monday, November 18th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the construction company to buy up to 6.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

AECOM Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.26 per share. This is a boost from AECOM's previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.91%. AECOM's dividend payout ratio is presently 29.73%.

Insider Activity at AECOM

In related news, CFO Gaurav Kapoor sold 42,400 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.34, for a total value of $4,890,416.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 31,228 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,601,837.52. The trade was a 57.59 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on ACM. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of AECOM from $113.00 to $122.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Citigroup lifted their target price on AECOM from $110.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on AECOM from $112.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. StockNews.com upgraded AECOM from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, October 27th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of AECOM from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $119.38.

AECOM Profile

AECOM, together with its subsidiaries, provides professional infrastructure consulting services worldwide. It operates in three segments: Americas, International, and AECOM Capital. The company offers planning, consulting, architectural and engineering design, construction and program management, and investment and development services to public and private clients.