Orchard Capital Management LLC Acquires Shares of 3,902 AZZ Inc. $AZZ

Orchard Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of AZZ Inc. (NYSE:AZZ) in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm acquired 3,902 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $605,000. AZZ accounts for about 0.6% of Orchard Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest position.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of AZZ by 92.5% during the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 258 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the period. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AZZ in the 2nd quarter worth $30,000. Kilter Group LLC purchased a new position in AZZ during the second quarter worth about $33,000. Kestra Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in AZZ during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Clearstead Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AZZ by 184.3% in the 4th quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 361 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 234 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.93% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AZZ has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings cut shares of AZZ from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on AZZ from $138.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. B. Riley Financial upped their target price on AZZ from $169.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $152.00 price target on shares of AZZ in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of AZZ from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, July 12th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $155.25.

Insider Transactions at AZZ

In other news, COO Jeffrey Vellines sold 4,220 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.55, for a total value of $647,981.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 1,834 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $281,610.70. This represents a 69.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Bryan Lee Stovall sold 2,677 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.07, for a total transaction of $401,737.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 35,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,252,450. This represents a 7.11% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

AZZ Trading Up 1.3%

AZZ stock opened at $141.30 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $4.25 billion, a PE ratio of 21.54 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a current ratio of 1.92, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $150.01 and a 200 day moving average price of $140.07. AZZ Inc. has a 52 week low of $92.98 and a 52 week high of $162.20.

AZZ (NYSE:AZZ) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 8th. The industrial products company reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.80 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $448.53 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $434.58 million. AZZ had a net margin of 11.83% and a return on equity of 14.18%. AZZ’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.78 EPS. AZZ has set its FY 2027 guidance at 6.750-7.150 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that AZZ Inc. will post 6.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AZZ Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 9th were paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. This is a boost from AZZ’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 9th. AZZ’s payout ratio is currently 14.63%.

AZZ Company Profile

AZZ Inc, incorporated in 1956 and headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, is a leading provider of galvanizing and metal finishing solutions alongside electrical equipment and services. The company supports a diverse range of industries—such as energy, infrastructure, heavy equipment and general industrial markets—by delivering corrosion protection and high-performance electrical solutions designed for demanding environments.

AZZ operates two primary business segments. The Global Coatings & Services segment offers hot-dip galvanizing, metal finishing, painting, powder coating and related value-added services to steel fabricators and original equipment manufacturers.