Babcock (NYSE:BW) Shares Down 9.3% – Here’s Why

Shares of Babcock (NYSE:BW) dropped 9.3% during mid-day trading on Friday. The company traded as low as $4.44 and last traded at $4.4080. 678,779 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 84% from the average session volume of 4,336,982 shares. The stock had previously closed at $4.86.

Latest Babcock News

Here’s some of the latest news about BW:

• Positive Sentiment: Major shareholder BRC Group Holdings bought 130,000 shares at an average price of $4.98, a potential signal of confidence. Insider purchase report
• Negative Sentiment: Needham lowered its price target to $15 from $20, although it maintained a Buy rating. The reduced target may weigh on sentiment despite the continued positive rating. Needham target report
• Negative Sentiment: Pomerantz issued an investor alert related to a class-action lawsuit involving Babcock & Wilcox securities, adding legal uncertainty; the alert itself does not establish wrongdoing. Investor alert

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on BW. Needham & Company LLC lowered their target price on Babcock from $20.00 to $15.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Babcock from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, August 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Babcock in a research note on Wednesday, November 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $19.00.

Babcock Trading Down 10.2%

The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $5.51 and a 200 day simple moving average of $11.22. The company has a current ratio of 1.79, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $634.89 million, a PE ratio of -9.49 and a beta of 1.24.

Babcock (NYSE:BW) last posted its earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The technology company reported $0.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.02 by $0.02. Babcock had a negative return on equity of 36.52% and a net margin of 4.11%. The business had revenue of $319.72 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $196.95 million. Equities analysts expect that Babcock will post 0.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Babcock

In related news, major shareholder Brc Group Holdings, Inc. purchased 130,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 11th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $4.98 per share, with a total value of $647,400.00. Following the acquisition, the insider directly owned 103,810 shares in the company, valued at $516,973.80. The trade was a -496.37% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 2.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Babcock

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BW. Royce & Associates LP lifted its stake in shares of Babcock by 13.1% in the 3rd quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 851,866 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $4,975,000 after purchasing an additional 98,686 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Babcock by 80.3% in the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 66,380 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $388,000 after buying an additional 29,564 shares during the last quarter. Pier 88 Investment Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Babcock by 59.9% in the third quarter. Pier 88 Investment Partners LLC now owns 23,500 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $137,000 after buying an additional 8,800 shares during the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA grew its position in Babcock by 28.3% during the third quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 20,687 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $121,000 after buying an additional 4,558 shares during the period. Finally, Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC grew its position in Babcock by 64.0% during the third quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 24,202 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $100,000 after buying an additional 9,448 shares during the period. 83.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Babcock Company Profile

Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises, Inc. is an energy and environmental technology company serving power, industrial and municipal customers. Its offerings include steam-generation equipment, emissions-control systems and related engineering, construction, maintenance and aftermarket services. The company also develops technologies for renewable and waste-to-energy applications, including systems that use biomass and municipal solid waste to produce energy. Its environmental technologies help customers manage emissions and other byproducts from energy and industrial processes.