Boston Partners Reduces Position in Jacobs Solutions Inc. (NYSE:J)

Boston Partners cut its holdings in shares of Jacobs Solutions Inc. (NYSE:J) by 8.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,729,579 shares of the company’s stock after selling 348,705 shares during the quarter. Boston Partners owned approximately 3.04% of Jacobs Solutions worth $499,443,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Jacobs Solutions by 2.4% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,145,665 shares of the company’s stock valued at $410,444,000 after buying an additional 73,566 shares during the period. Ninety One UK Ltd increased its position in shares of Jacobs Solutions by 29.2% during the fourth quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 1,988,092 shares of the company’s stock valued at $265,649,000 after buying an additional 449,161 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Jacobs Solutions by 3.2% during the third quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 1,040,032 shares of the company’s stock valued at $143,263,000 after buying an additional 32,650 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in shares of Jacobs Solutions by 9.6% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 896,004 shares of the company’s stock valued at $119,724,000 after buying an additional 78,284 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Jacobs Solutions by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 777,888 shares of the company’s stock valued at $103,941,000 after buying an additional 17,372 shares during the period. 85.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Jacobs Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of J stock opened at $122.80 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $131.55 and a 200 day moving average of $137.39. Jacobs Solutions Inc. has a 52 week low of $118.71 and a 52 week high of $156.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.32, a PEG ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41.

Jacobs Solutions (NYSE:J) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.33 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.29 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $2.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.92 billion. Jacobs Solutions had a return on equity of 14.87% and a net margin of 4.28%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.45 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Jacobs Solutions Inc. will post 6.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Jacobs Solutions declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, February 4th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Jacobs Solutions Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.04%. This is a positive change from Jacobs Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Jacobs Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.39%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on J shares. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $152.00 price target on shares of Jacobs Solutions in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on shares of Jacobs Solutions from $154.00 to $148.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Benchmark cut shares of Jacobs Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Jacobs Solutions from $161.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $150.00 price objective on shares of Jacobs Solutions in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $153.63.

Jacobs Solutions Company Profile

Jacobs Solutions Inc provides consulting, technical, engineering, scientific, and project delivery services for the government and private sectors in the United States, Europe, Canada, India, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, the Middle East, and Africa. It operates through Critical Mission Solutions, People & Places Solutions, Divergent Solutions, and PA Consulting segments.