John Bean Technologies (NYSE:JBT) Sets New 12-Month High – What’s Next?

John Bean Technologies Co. (NYSE:JBT)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $128.60 and last traded at $128.17, with a volume of 320396 shares. The stock had previously closed at $124.78.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on JBT. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on John Bean Technologies in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. They set a “hold” rating and a $130.00 price target on the stock. CJS Securities initiated coverage on John Bean Technologies in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $150.00 target price on the stock.

John Bean Technologies Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 2.00 and a current ratio of 2.55. The company has a 50-day moving average of $118.33 and a 200-day moving average of $102.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.22, a P/E/G ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.24.

John Bean Technologies (NYSE:JBT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The industrial products company reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.09. John Bean Technologies had a return on equity of 10.16% and a net margin of 10.25%. The business had revenue of $453.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $442.20 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.11 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 12.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that John Bean Technologies Co. will post 5.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

John Bean Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.31%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. John Bean Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.42%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On John Bean Technologies

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wolverine Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in John Bean Technologies in the third quarter valued at $39,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in John Bean Technologies in the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new position in John Bean Technologies during the second quarter valued at approximately $73,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC purchased a new stake in John Bean Technologies during the second quarter worth approximately $85,000. Finally, KBC Group NV increased its position in shares of John Bean Technologies by 31.5% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,014 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $100,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. 98.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About John Bean Technologies

John Bean Technologies Corporation provides technology solutions to food and beverage industry in North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia Pacific, and Latin America. It offers value-added processing that includes chilling, mixing/grinding, injecting, blending, marinating, tumbling, flattening, forming, portioning, coating, cooking, frying, freezing, extracting, pasteurizing, sterilizing, concentrating, high pressure processing, weighing, inspecting, filling, closing, sealing, end of line material handling, and packaging solutions to the food, beverage, and health market.