Xylem (NYSE:XYL) Reaches New 12-Month High Following Analyst Upgrade

Xylem Inc. (NYSE:XYL) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday after Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on the stock from $157.00 to $162.00. Royal Bank of Canada currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Xylem traded as high as $138.68 and last traded at $138.41, with a volume of 421892 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $137.21.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on Xylem from $142.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Xylem from $136.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Xylem from $110.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Xylem from $126.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Raymond James raised shares of Xylem from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $140.70.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Geri-Michelle Mcshane sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $122.89, for a total value of $122,890.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,935 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $360,682.15. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Xylem news, CAO Geri-Michelle Mcshane sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $122.89, for a total value of $122,890.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,935 shares in the company, valued at $360,682.15. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Franz Cerwinka sold 2,408 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.79, for a total transaction of $293,270.32. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,431,032.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Xylem in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new position in Xylem during the third quarter worth about $38,000. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Xylem by 170.9% during the 1st quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 317 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. increased its stake in shares of Xylem by 184.9% in the 1st quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 339 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 220 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Xylem in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.96% of the company’s stock.

Xylem Stock Up 0.9 %

The firm has a market cap of $33.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 1.08. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $128.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $115.54. The company has a current ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19.

Xylem (NYSE:XYL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The industrial products company reported $0.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $2.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2 billion. Xylem had a return on equity of 8.95% and a net margin of 8.34%. The company’s revenue was up 40.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.72 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Xylem Inc. will post 4.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Xylem Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 21st were paid a $0.36 dividend. This is an increase from Xylem’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 20th. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.04%. Xylem’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.25%.

Xylem Company Profile

Xylem Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the design, manufacture, and servicing of engineered products and solutions worldwide. It operates through four segments: Water Infrastructure, Applied Water, Measurement & Control Solutions, and Integrated Solutions and Services. The Water Infrastructure segment offers products, including water, storm water, and wastewater pumps; controls and systems; filtration, disinfection, and biological treatment equipment; and mobile dewatering equipment and rental services under the ADI, Flygt, Godwin, Sanitaire, Magneto, Neptune Benson, Ionpure, Leopold, Wedeco, and Xylem Vue brands.