IES (NASDAQ:IESC) Hits New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

Shares of IES Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:IESC) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $449.56 and last traded at $439.9450, with a volume of 20124 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $428.62.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of IES from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, November 30th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of IES in a research note on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy”.

IES Stock Up 3.7%

The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $396.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $349.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.35 and a beta of 1.75.

IES (NASDAQ:IESC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 21st. The technology company reported $3.77 earnings per share for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $897.80 million for the quarter. IES had a net margin of 8.99% and a return on equity of 36.43%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Matthew J. Simmes sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $406.96, for a total value of $4,069,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 98,575 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $40,116,082. This represents a 9.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Chairman Jeffrey L. Et Al Gendell sold 3,774 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total transaction of $1,585,985.76. Following the sale, the chairman owned 10,677,414 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,487,076,459.36. The trade was a 0.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 146,311 shares of company stock valued at $60,068,277 in the last three months. 56.76% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of IES

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in IES during the first quarter worth $5,193,000. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of IES by 31.8% during the first quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 2,085 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $344,000 after buying an additional 503 shares during the period. Boston Partners grew its stake in IES by 3.0% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,870 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $474,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC acquired a new position in IES during the first quarter worth approximately $16,853,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in IES by 1.8% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 53,699 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $8,866,000 after buying an additional 966 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.60% of the company’s stock.

IES Company Profile

IES Holdings, Inc engages in the design and installation of integrated electrical and technology systems, and provides infrastructure products and services in the United States. The Communications segment designs, installs, and maintains network infrastructure within data centers for co-location and managed hosting customers; corporate, educational, financial, hospitality, and healthcare buildings; e-commerce distribution centers; and high-tech manufacturing facilities.