First Trust Advisors LP Buys 226,272 Shares of Jacobs Solutions Inc. (NYSE:J)

First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Jacobs Solutions Inc. (NYSE:J) by 43.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 741,342 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 226,272 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP’s holdings in Jacobs Solutions were worth $99,058,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Heritage Family Offices LLP grew its stake in shares of Jacobs Solutions by 55.7% in the fourth quarter. Heritage Family Offices LLP now owns 14,912 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,993,000 after purchasing an additional 5,332 shares during the last quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. increased its stake in shares of Jacobs Solutions by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 9,767 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,305,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the period. Occidental Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Jacobs Solutions by 11.7% in the fourth quarter. Occidental Asset Management LLC now owns 25,045 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,347,000 after acquiring an additional 2,619 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in Jacobs Solutions by 12.2% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 433,748 shares of the company’s stock valued at $56,778,000 after acquiring an additional 47,211 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in Jacobs Solutions during the 3rd quarter valued at $3,205,000. 85.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Jacobs Solutions from $154.00 to $148.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Citigroup decreased their target price on Jacobs Solutions from $161.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their price target on Jacobs Solutions from $141.00 to $130.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $152.14.

Jacobs Solutions Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:J opened at $117.18 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $14.36 billion, a PE ratio of 24.16, a PEG ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.73. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $122.32 and a 200-day moving average price of $132.64. Jacobs Solutions Inc. has a 1-year low of $106.23 and a 1-year high of $156.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.25.

Jacobs Solutions (NYSE:J) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.33 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.29 by $0.04. Jacobs Solutions had a net margin of 4.28% and a return on equity of 14.87%. The firm had revenue of $2.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.92 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.45 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Jacobs Solutions Inc. will post 6.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Jacobs Solutions announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, February 4th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Jacobs Solutions Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were paid a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.09%. This is a boost from Jacobs Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Jacobs Solutions’s payout ratio is currently 26.39%.

Jacobs Solutions Company Profile

Jacobs Solutions Inc provides consulting, technical, engineering, scientific, and project delivery services for the government and private sectors in the United States, Europe, Canada, India, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, the Middle East, and Africa. It operates through Critical Mission Solutions, People & Places Solutions, Divergent Solutions, and PA Consulting segments.