Short Interest in ITT Inc. (NYSE:ITT) Expands By 28.8%

ITT Inc. (NYSE:ITT) was the target of a significant increase in short interest during the month of November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 1,340,000 shares, an increase of 28.8% from the November 15th total of 1,040,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 373,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.6 days. Approximately 1.7% of the shares of the company are sold short.

ITT Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of ITT stock opened at $150.70 on Monday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $151.18 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $140.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.09. ITT has a 1 year low of $113.70 and a 1 year high of $161.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.72, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.40.

ITT (NYSE:ITT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The conglomerate reported $1.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.03. ITT had a net margin of 13.67% and a return on equity of 17.98%. The business had revenue of $885.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $884.50 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.37 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that ITT will post 5.84 earnings per share for the current year.

ITT Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.319 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.85%. ITT’s payout ratio is 21.67%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of ITT from $165.00 to $163.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of ITT from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 7th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of ITT in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Citigroup increased their price objective on ITT from $176.00 to $183.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their target price on ITT from $155.00 to $164.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, ITT presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $166.75.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ITT

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Algert Global LLC bought a new position in ITT in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,158,000. Eagle Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of ITT during the third quarter worth about $67,503,000. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of ITT by 115.6% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 245,676 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $31,717,000 after purchasing an additional 131,708 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its stake in ITT by 46.6% in the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 95,398 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $14,263,000 after purchasing an additional 30,320 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in ITT by 16,832.5% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 14,054 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $2,101,000 after purchasing an additional 13,971 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.59% of the company’s stock.

About ITT

ITT Inc, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells engineered critical components and customized technology solutions for the transportation, industrial, and energy markets in the United States and internationally. The Motion Technologies segment manufactures brake pads, shims, shock absorbers, and energy absorption components; and sealing technologies primarily for the transportation industry, including passenger cars, trucks, light- and heavy-duty commercial and military vehicles, buses, and trains.