IDEX Corporation (NYSE:IEX) Receives $196.86 Consensus PT from Analysts

Shares of IDEX Corporation (NYSE:IEX) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the seven brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $196.8571.

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on IEX. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on IDEX from $204.00 to $191.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 20th. Citigroup raised their target price on IDEX from $197.00 to $202.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 8th. Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of IDEX in a research report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of IDEX in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on shares of IDEX from $200.00 to $195.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 30th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On IDEX

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. grew its holdings in shares of IDEX by 257.5% during the 2nd quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 143 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. American National Bank & Trust bought a new position in IDEX in the second quarter worth $25,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in IDEX during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in IDEX during the second quarter worth $28,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in IDEX by 61.0% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 198 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.96% of the company’s stock.

IDEX Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of IEX stock opened at $183.66 on Friday. IDEX has a 12 month low of $153.36 and a 12 month high of $226.04. The company has a market cap of $13.75 billion, a PE ratio of 29.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 2.06, a current ratio of 2.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The business’s 50 day moving average is $173.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $170.55.

IDEX (NYSE:IEX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, December 16th. The industrial products company reported $1.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $712.00 million during the quarter. IDEX had a net margin of 13.97% and a return on equity of 15.20%. Equities analysts predict that IDEX will post 8.26 EPS for the current year.

IDEX declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Thursday, September 18th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the industrial products company to reacquire up to 8.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

IDEX Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 16th will be given a dividend of $0.71 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 16th. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. IDEX’s dividend payout ratio is currently 44.94%.

About IDEX

IDEX Corporation is a diversified industrial manufacturer specializing in the design, production and distribution of highly engineered fluidics systems, measurement technologies and safety solutions. The company’s core offerings include positive-displacement pumps, flow meters, valves, sampling systems and analytical instruments that serve a wide range of end markets such as water treatment, chemical processing, energy, food and beverage, and life sciences. Through its focus on precision engineering and proprietary material science, IDEX delivers products designed for reliability in demanding applications.

Operations at IDEX are organized into three principal segments.