Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Buys 4,241 Shares of Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Itron, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITRI) by 10.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 44,391 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after buying an additional 4,241 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.10% of Itron worth $4,820,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ITRI. Intech Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Itron by 105.9% in the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 19,444 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $2,077,000 after acquiring an additional 10,001 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Itron by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,074,940 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $114,835,000 after purchasing an additional 5,630 shares during the last quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Itron by 78.3% during the 4th quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 6,083 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $660,000 after purchasing an additional 2,671 shares during the last quarter. Beacon Harbor Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Itron during the 3rd quarter valued at about $5,994,000. Finally, Systematic Financial Management LP raised its holdings in Itron by 12.2% in the third quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 134,362 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $14,351,000 after buying an additional 14,590 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of Itron from $124.00 to $131.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. TD Cowen increased their target price on Itron from $125.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price target on Itron from $130.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Roth Mkm increased their price objective on Itron from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Guggenheim decreased their target price on Itron from $135.00 to $133.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $127.64.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Joan S. Hooper sold 2,322 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.90, for a total value of $215,713.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 92,076 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,553,860.40. This represents a 2.46 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Christopher E. Ware sold 648 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.90, for a total transaction of $60,199.20. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 20,326 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,888,285.40. The trade was a 3.09 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 3,287 shares of company stock valued at $305,362. 1.45% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Itron Stock Down 0.8 %

ITRI opened at $106.89 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $104.98 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $106.85. The company has a market capitalization of $4.82 billion, a PE ratio of 21.90, a PEG ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.46. Itron, Inc. has a 1-year low of $86.13 and a 1-year high of $124.90. The company has a current ratio of 3.36, a quick ratio of 2.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91.

Itron Profile

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.