JPMorgan Chase & Co. Purchases 220,035 Shares of AECOM (NYSE:ACM)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of AECOM (NYSE:ACM) by 40.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 768,266 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 220,035 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s holdings in AECOM were worth $79,339,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Private Trust Co. NA bought a new position in AECOM during the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its position in shares of AECOM by 4,242.9% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 304 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 297 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in shares of AECOM by 196.2% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 388 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in AECOM during the third quarter worth $50,000. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in AECOM during the 3rd quarter valued at $59,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.41% of the company’s stock.

AECOM Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of ACM stock opened at $106.30 on Friday. AECOM has a fifty-two week low of $82.23 and a fifty-two week high of $118.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.08 billion, a PE ratio of 35.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.13. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $110.63 and its 200-day simple moving average is $100.80.

AECOM (NYSE:ACM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 18th. The construction company reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.24 by $0.03. AECOM had a net margin of 2.50% and a return on equity of 25.46%. The company had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.86 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.01 EPS. AECOM’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that AECOM will post 5.1 earnings per share for the current year.

AECOM Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be issued a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.98%. This is a positive change from AECOM’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 2nd. AECOM’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.14%.

AECOM announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Monday, November 18th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the construction company to reacquire up to 6.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ACM has been the subject of several recent research reports. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on AECOM from $113.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. StockNews.com raised shares of AECOM from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, October 27th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of AECOM from $110.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Truist Financial upped their price target on AECOM from $119.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their target price on AECOM from $115.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $119.38.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Gaurav Kapoor sold 42,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.34, for a total value of $4,890,416.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 31,228 shares in the company, valued at $3,601,837.52. This represents a 57.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.42% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About AECOM

AECOM, together with its subsidiaries, provides professional infrastructure consulting services worldwide. It operates in three segments: Americas, International, and AECOM Capital. The company offers planning, consulting, architectural and engineering design, construction and program management, and investment and development services to public and private clients.