Babcock (NYSE:BW) Shares Up 7.6% – What’s Next?

Babcock (NYSE:BW) rose 7.6% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $7.62 and last traded at $7.64. Approximately 637,883 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 84% from the average daily volume of 4,085,504 shares. The stock had previously closed at $7.10.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded Babcock from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, August 23rd. Northland Securities set a $23.00 price objective on shares of Babcock in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Needham & Company LLC began coverage on shares of Babcock in a research note on Monday, August 31st. They set a “buy” rating and a $20.00 target price for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Babcock from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $15.40.

Babcock Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $1.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -43.53 and a beta of 1.19. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $9.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $13.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.21, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a current ratio of 1.45.

Babcock (NYSE:BW) last posted its earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The technology company reported $0.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.02 by $0.02. Babcock had a negative net margin of 2.17% and a negative return on equity of 4.51%. The firm had revenue of $319.69 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $196.95 million. On average, analysts expect that Babcock will post 0.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Babcock

In other Babcock news, Director Philip Moeller bought 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 13th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $9.50 per share, for a total transaction of $47,500.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 240,809 shares in the company, valued at $2,287,685.50. The trade was a 2.12% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 2.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. California State Teachers Retirement System acquired a new position in shares of Babcock during the second quarter valued at $25,159,000. Readystate Asset Management LP bought a new position in Babcock in the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,900,000. Situational Awareness LP grew its position in Babcock by 49.7% in the 2nd quarter. Situational Awareness LP now owns 2,027,451 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $28,587,000 after buying an additional 673,551 shares in the last quarter. Sigma Planning Corp acquired a new position in Babcock during the 2nd quarter valued at about $462,000. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Babcock during the 2nd quarter worth about $8,636,000. Institutional investors own 83.17% of the company’s stock.

About Babcock

Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises, Inc (NYSE: BW) is a specialized provider of energy and environmental technologies and services serving power generation and heavy industrial markets. The company designs, manufactures and maintains critical components and systems that support the safe and efficient operation of both fossil-fuel and renewable power facilities. Its core offerings include industrial and utility boilers, environmental control systems for emissions reduction, and aftermarket support services ranging from inspection and maintenance to spare parts management.

In addition to its boiler and emissions control portfolio, Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises delivers lifecycle solutions aimed at enhancing plant performance and compliance.