SFE Investment Counsel Buys 1,152 Shares of Jacobs Solutions Inc. (NYSE:J)

SFE Investment Counsel increased its stake in Jacobs Solutions Inc. (NYSE:J) by 3.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 38,242 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,152 shares during the period. SFE Investment Counsel’s holdings in Jacobs Solutions were worth $5,110,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of J. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Jacobs Solutions by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,145,665 shares of the company’s stock valued at $410,444,000 after buying an additional 73,566 shares in the last quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd boosted its stake in Jacobs Solutions by 29.2% during the fourth quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 1,988,092 shares of the company’s stock worth $265,649,000 after acquiring an additional 449,161 shares in the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC grew its holdings in Jacobs Solutions by 3.2% in the third quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 1,040,032 shares of the company’s stock worth $143,263,000 after purchasing an additional 32,650 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Jacobs Solutions by 1.9% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 760,516 shares of the company’s stock valued at $99,552,000 after purchasing an additional 14,405 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Jacobs Solutions by 19.9% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 650,110 shares of the company’s stock valued at $85,099,000 after purchasing an additional 107,849 shares during the last quarter. 85.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on J. Citigroup cut their price target on Jacobs Solutions from $161.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. StockNews.com began coverage on Jacobs Solutions in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Benchmark downgraded Jacobs Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Jacobs Solutions from $154.00 to $148.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $152.00 price objective on shares of Jacobs Solutions in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Jacobs Solutions has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $155.89.

Jacobs Solutions Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:J opened at $130.19 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 1.25. The firm has a market cap of $15.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.72. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $135.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $140.64. Jacobs Solutions Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $110.95 and a fifty-two week high of $150.54.

Jacobs Solutions (NYSE:J) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.29 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $2.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.92 billion. Jacobs Solutions had a net margin of 4.28% and a return on equity of 14.87%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.45 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Jacobs Solutions Inc. will post 6.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Jacobs Solutions Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.98%. This is a boost from Jacobs Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. Jacobs Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.92%.

Jacobs Solutions declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, February 4th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

About Jacobs Solutions

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.