Share Repurchase Plan Authorized by Trimble (NASDAQ:TRMB)

Trimble (NASDAQ:TRMB) announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Friday, December 5th, RTT News reports. The company plans to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the scientific and technical instruments company to purchase up to 5.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Trimble Trading Up 1.5%

Shares of NASDAQ TRMB opened at $83.52 on Friday. Trimble has a 12-month low of $52.91 and a 12-month high of $87.50. The company has a market cap of $19.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $79.49 and its 200 day simple moving average is $78.92.

Trimble (NASDAQ:TRMB) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 12th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $856.50 million for the quarter. Trimble had a return on equity of 10.73% and a net margin of 9.93%. Equities research analysts expect that Trimble will post 2.37 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on TRMB. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on shares of Trimble in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $94.00 target price on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Trimble in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Trimble from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 19th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Trimble from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $97.00 price objective on shares of Trimble in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Trimble presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $94.18.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Robert G. Painter sold 7,500 shares of Trimble stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.50, for a total value of $596,250.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 84,879 shares in the company, valued at $6,747,880.50. This trade represents a 8.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Christopher F. Keating sold 7,365 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.74, for a total transaction of $602,015.10. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 406 shares in the company, valued at $33,186.44. The trade was a 94.78% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 24,699 shares of company stock worth $1,955,304 in the last 90 days. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Trimble

Trimble Inc provides technology solutions that enable professionals and field mobile workers to enhance or transform their work processes worldwide. The company's Buildings and Infrastructure segment offers field and office software for project design and visualization; systems to guide and control construction equipment; software for 3D design and data sharing; systems to monitor, track, and manage assets, equipment, and workers; software to share and communicate data; program management solutions for construction owners; 3D conceptual design and modeling software; building information modeling software; enterprise resource planning, project management, and project collaboration solutions; integrated site layout and measurement systems; cost estimating, scheduling, and project controls solutions; and applications for sub-contractors and trades.