Keene & Associates Inc. Purchases New Shares in Jacobs Solutions Inc. (NYSE:J)

Keene & Associates Inc. acquired a new position in Jacobs Solutions Inc. (NYSE:J) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor acquired 22,247 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,973,000. Jacobs Solutions makes up approximately 2.4% of Keene & Associates Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust bought a new position in shares of Jacobs Solutions during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $653,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Jacobs Solutions by 584.3% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 787 shares of the company’s stock worth $105,000 after buying an additional 672 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO. increased its position in Jacobs Solutions by 7.9% during the fourth quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 7,370 shares of the company’s stock valued at $985,000 after acquiring an additional 537 shares during the last quarter. Truist Financial Corp raised its stake in shares of Jacobs Solutions by 6.0% in the fourth quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 70,341 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,399,000 after acquiring an additional 4,000 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its stake in shares of Jacobs Solutions by 31.7% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 23,991 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,206,000 after acquiring an additional 5,774 shares during the period. 85.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Jacobs Solutions Stock Up 1.2 %

NYSE:J opened at $130.37 on Wednesday. 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 Inc. has a 1-year low of $110.95 and a 1-year high of $150.54. The company has a 50-day moving average of $135.21 and a 200 day moving average of $140.17. The firm has a market cap of $15.98 billion, a PE ratio of 26.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.72.

Jacobs Solutions (NYSE:J) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 company’s revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.45 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Jacobs Solutions Inc. will post 6.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Jacobs Solutions announced that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, February 4th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Jacobs Solutions Increases Dividend

The business 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 $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. This is an increase from Jacobs Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.98%. Jacobs Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on J. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Jacobs Solutions from $161.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Jacobs Solutions in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. They set 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 dropped their price objective on Jacobs Solutions from $154.00 to $148.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $152.00 price objective on shares of Jacobs Solutions in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $155.89.

Jacobs Solutions 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.