AZZ Inc. $AZZ Position Increased by VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al raised its position in shares of AZZ Inc. (NYSE:AZZ) by 86.0% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 9,300 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 4,300 shares during the period. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al’s holdings in AZZ were worth $997,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Versor Investments LP purchased a new stake in AZZ during the fourth quarter valued at about $686,000. F m Investments LLC lifted its stake in AZZ by 48.3% during the fourth quarter. F m Investments LLC now owns 30,404 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,259,000 after buying an additional 9,907 shares in the last quarter. Pier Capital LLC purchased a new stake in AZZ during the fourth quarter valued at about $7,606,000. Robeco Schweiz AG lifted its position in shares of AZZ by 41.5% in the fourth quarter. Robeco Schweiz AG now owns 56,600 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,066,000 after purchasing an additional 16,600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, McIlrath & Eck LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AZZ in the fourth quarter worth approximately $101,000. 90.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on AZZ. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $152.00 price target on shares of AZZ in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Noble Financial reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of AZZ in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of AZZ from $125.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. B. Riley Financial increased their price target on shares of AZZ from $167.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of AZZ from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $141.80.

AZZ Price Performance

NYSE AZZ opened at $141.17 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $133.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $121.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.70 and a quick ratio of 1.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.44 and a beta of 1.17. AZZ Inc. has a 52-week low of $86.67 and a 52-week high of $151.67.

AZZ (NYSE:AZZ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The industrial products company reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.15. AZZ had a net margin of 19.23% and a return on equity of 14.47%. The business had revenue of $385.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $382.24 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.98 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. AZZ has set its FY 2027 guidance at 6.500-7.000 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that AZZ Inc. will post 6.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AZZ declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Friday, January 30th that permits the company to repurchase $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the industrial products company to buy up to 2.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

AZZ Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 23rd were issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 23rd. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. AZZ’s dividend payout ratio is currently 7.62%.

AZZ Profile

AZZ Inc, incorporated in 1956 and headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, is a leading provider of galvanizing and metal finishing solutions alongside electrical equipment and services. The company supports a diverse range of industries—such as energy, infrastructure, heavy equipment and general industrial markets—by delivering corrosion protection and high-performance electrical solutions designed for demanding environments.

AZZ operates two primary business segments. The Global Coatings & Services segment offers hot-dip galvanizing, metal finishing, painting, powder coating and related value-added services to steel fabricators and original equipment manufacturers.