Timken (NYSE:TKR) Upgraded by Bank of America to Neutral Rating

Bank of America upgraded shares of Timken (NYSE:TKR - Free Report) from an underperform rating to a neutral rating in a report released on Tuesday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Bank of America currently has $78.00 target price on the industrial products company's stock, up from their previous target price of $73.00.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on TKR. DA Davidson cut their target price on shares of Timken from $103.00 to $99.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Timken from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $80.00 to $95.00 in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Timken from $90.00 to $85.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Evercore ISI upgraded Timken from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $87.00 to $91.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Timken from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $82.00 to $93.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $91.09.

Timken Stock Performance

Timken stock traded up $1.84 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $80.75. The stock had a trading volume of 720,126 shares, compared to its average volume of 652,482. The stock's 50 day moving average is $75.20 and its two-hundred day moving average is $79.39. The stock has a market cap of $5.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.39. Timken has a 1 year low of $69.35 and a 1 year high of $94.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 3.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71.

Timken (NYSE:TKR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $1.16 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.08. Timken had a return on equity of 14.82% and a net margin of 7.41%. As a group, analysts predict that Timken will post 5.61 EPS for the current year.

Timken Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 29th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 19th were given a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.68%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 19th. Timken's dividend payout ratio is currently 28.27%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Richard G. Kyle sold 30,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.59, for a total value of $2,297,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 194,485 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,895,606.15. This trade represents a 13.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 8.70% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Timken

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Coastline Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Timken in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Livelsberger Financial Advisory acquired a new position in shares of Timken in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in Timken by 64.1% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 430 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 168 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in Timken during the third quarter valued at about $74,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of Timken by 20.0% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 997 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $80,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.08% of the company's stock.

Timken Company Profile

The Timken Company designs, manufactures, and sells engineered bearings and industrial motion products, and related services in the United States and internationally. The company's Engineered Bearings segment provides various bearing products, including tapered, spherical, and cylindrical roller bearings; plain bearings, metal-polymer bearings, and rod end bearings; radial, angular, and precision ball bearings; thrust and specialty ball bearings; journal bearings; and housed or mounted bearings.