Cannell & Spears LLC Takes Position in Ituran Location and Control Ltd. $ITRN

Cannell & Spears LLC bought a new stake in Ituran Location and Control Ltd. (NASDAQ:ITRN) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 49,531 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,373,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. GW&K Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Ituran Location and Control by 909.3% during the fourth quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 539,817 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $23,218,000 after acquiring an additional 486,331 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC increased its position in shares of Ituran Location and Control by 721.6% during the 4th quarter. Nuveen LLC now owns 104,190 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,481,000 after purchasing an additional 91,509 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Global Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Ituran Location and Control by 106.4% during the 4th quarter. Strategic Global Advisors LLC now owns 132,325 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,691,000 after purchasing an additional 68,222 shares during the last quarter. Man Group plc raised its stake in shares of Ituran Location and Control by 90.8% during the 2nd quarter. Man Group plc now owns 137,657 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,331,000 after purchasing an additional 65,502 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Ituran Location and Control by 71.1% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 125,478 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,397,000 after purchasing an additional 52,150 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.80% of the company’s stock.

Ituran Location and Control Stock Performance

Ituran Location and Control stock opened at $54.77 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $60.62 and a 200 day simple moving average of $53.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.08 and a beta of 0.77. Ituran Location and Control Ltd. has a 52 week low of $32.71 and a 52 week high of $68.30.

Ituran Location and Control (NASDAQ:ITRN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 26th. The industrial products company reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.05. Ituran Location and Control had a return on equity of 27.70% and a net margin of 16.03%.The company had revenue of $102.67 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $95.32 million. Research analysts forecast that Ituran Location and Control Ltd. will post 3.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Ituran Location and Control Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 24th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 24th. Ituran Location and Control’s payout ratio is 66.01%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Zacks Research raised Ituran Location and Control to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 28th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Ituran Location and Control in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Ituran Location and Control from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $60.67.

About Ituran Location and Control

Ituran Location and Control Ltd. is a provider of wireless vehicle tracking and stolen vehicle recovery services. The company leverages a combination of cellular and global positioning system (GPS) technologies to offer real-time monitoring and location-based solutions for private vehicle owners, fleet operators and insurance companies. Its core offerings include subscription-based tracking devices, centralized control centers and software platforms that enable clients to detect unauthorized vehicle use, dispatch recovery teams and manage fleet logistics.

Founded in 1994 in Israel, Ituran pioneered the use of wireless communications for security and telematics applications.