Xylem (NYSE:XYL) Reaches New 1-Year High on Analyst Upgrade

Xylem Inc. (NYSE:XYL) hit 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. The stock had previously closed at $137.21.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Citigroup raised their target price on Xylem from $126.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Xylem from $136.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Xylem from $151.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Xylem from $110.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of Xylem in a report on Tuesday, March 12th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $150.00 price objective on the stock. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $140.70.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Institutional Trading of Xylem

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of XYL. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Xylem by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,048,996 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,207,683,000 after buying an additional 187,847 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in Xylem by 11.5% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,528,905 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $412,267,000 after acquiring an additional 466,911 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Xylem by 35.1% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,182,821 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $380,762,000 after acquiring an additional 1,086,102 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in Xylem by 10.6% in the 3rd quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 3,408,200 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $310,249,000 after purchasing an additional 327,383 shares during the period. Finally, Baillie Gifford & Co. grew its position in shares of Xylem by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 3,066,639 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $350,701,000 after purchasing an additional 69,619 shares in the last quarter. 87.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Xylem Trading Up 0.9 %

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

Xylem (NYSE:XYL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The industrial products company reported $0.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by $0.06. Xylem had a return on equity of 8.95% and a net margin of 8.34%. The business had revenue of $2.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.72 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 40.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Xylem Inc. will post 4.24 EPS for the current year.

Xylem Increases Dividend

The business 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 represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.04%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 20th. This is a boost from Xylem’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. Xylem’s payout ratio is currently 51.25%.

About Xylem

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.