Ormat Technologies (NYSE:ORA) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Still a Buy?

Shares of Ormat Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:ORA) saw an uptick in trading volume on Wednesday . 1,755,349 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 148% from the previous session’s volume of 708,132 shares.The stock last traded at $108.1890 and had previously closed at $108.00.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on ORA. Citigroup raised their price objective on Ormat Technologies from $110.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Ormat Technologies from $148.00 to $143.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Royal Bank Of Canada initiated coverage on shares of Ormat Technologies in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $130.00 target price for the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Ormat Technologies in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Ormat Technologies from $102.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $129.09.

Ormat Technologies Stock Up 2.8%

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $117.18 and a 200 day moving average of $109.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.54 and a beta of 0.84.

Ormat Technologies (NYSE:ORA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 25th. The energy company reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67. Ormat Technologies had a return on equity of 5.21% and a net margin of 12.52%.The firm had revenue of $276.04 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $257.75 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.67 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Ormat Technologies, Inc. will post 1.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ormat Technologies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 24th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $0.12 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 10th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. Ormat Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.88%.

Insider Transactions at Ormat Technologies

In related news, insider Jessica Woelfel sold 2,359 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.16, for a total transaction of $248,072.44. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 3,433 shares in the company, valued at approximately $361,014.28. This trade represents a 40.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.56% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Ormat Technologies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new position in Ormat Technologies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Ormat Technologies during the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC bought a new position in Ormat Technologies during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in Ormat Technologies by 245.3% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 297 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 211 shares during the last quarter. 95.49% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Ormat Technologies

Ormat Technologies, Inc is a leading renewable energy company specializing in geothermal and recovered energy power plants. Through its vertically integrated business model, Ormat designs, develops, engineers, constructs, owns and operates clean energy projects worldwide. The company’s core technology centers on the Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC), which converts heat from geothermal sources or industrial waste streams into sustainable electricity without combustion.

Ormat’s offering includes turnkey power plant solutions, proprietary ORC equipment and ongoing operations and maintenance services.