ABM Industries (NYSE:ABM) Upgraded by StockNews.com to “Buy”

StockNews.com upgraded shares of ABM Industries (NYSE:ABM) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Wednesday.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on ABM. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of ABM Industries from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Monday, June 10th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of ABM Industries from $45.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Friday, June 7th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $48.80.

ABM Industries Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ABM opened at $49.17 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.87 and a beta of 1.16. ABM Industries has a one year low of $37.61 and a one year high of $53.05. The company’s fifty day moving average is $46.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $43.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 1.44.

ABM Industries (NYSE:ABM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 6th. The business services provider reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.79 by $0.08. ABM Industries had a net margin of 3.04% and a return on equity of 12.52%. The business had revenue of $2.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.90 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that ABM Industries will post 3.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ABM Industries Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 5th. Investors of record on Friday, July 5th will be given a dividend of $0.225 per share. This represents a $0.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.83%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 5th. ABM Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.56%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other ABM Industries news, EVP Andrea R. Newborn sold 12,615 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.00, for a total value of $567,675.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 45,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,063,115. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Andrea R. Newborn sold 12,615 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.00, for a total transaction of $567,675.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 45,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,063,115. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Rene Jacobsen sold 5,563 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.59, for a total value of $242,491.17. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 111,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,868,000.43. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 23,643 shares of company stock worth $1,055,490 in the last 90 days. 1.04% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ABM Industries

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ABM. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new position in ABM Industries during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in ABM Industries by 323.4% during the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 669 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 511 shares during the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC bought a new position in ABM Industries during the fourth quarter worth $48,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in ABM Industries by 2,102.0% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 1,079 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 1,030 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Clarity Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in ABM Industries during the fourth quarter worth $54,000. 91.62% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ABM Industries Company Profile

ABM Industries Incorporated, through its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of integrated facility, infrastructure, and mobility solutions in the United States and internationally. It operates through Business & Industry, Manufacturing & Distribution, Education, Aviation, and Technical Solutions segments.