Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. Boosts Holdings in AZZ Inc. $AZZ

Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of AZZ Inc. (NYSE:AZZ) by 3,321.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,345 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,218 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc.’s holdings in AZZ were worth $466,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of AZZ during the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. Assetmark Inc. purchased a new stake in AZZ in the 3rd quarter worth about $46,000. Huntington National Bank raised its position in AZZ by 56.8% in the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 428 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the period. Quarry LP lifted its stake in AZZ by 219.9% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 435 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in AZZ by 40.1% in the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 458 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.93% of the company’s stock.

AZZ Stock Performance

AZZ stock opened at $127.33 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $128.69 and a 200-day moving average price of $114.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a current ratio of 1.66. AZZ Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $70.90 and a fifty-two week high of $141.18. The company has a market capitalization of $3.80 billion, a PE ratio of 11.97 and a beta of 1.15.

AZZ (NYSE:AZZ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 7th. The industrial products company reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.43 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $425.75 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $412.97 million. AZZ had a return on equity of 14.45% and a net margin of 19.89%.AZZ’s revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.39 earnings per share. AZZ has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.900-6.200 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that AZZ Inc. will post 5.13 earnings per share for the current year.

AZZ declared that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Friday, January 30th that allows the company to buyback $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the industrial products company to purchase up to 2.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

AZZ Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 5th were paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 5th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. AZZ’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.52%.

Insider Buying and Selling at AZZ

In related news, insider Tara D. Mackey sold 2,923 shares of AZZ stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.00, for a total value of $397,528.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 22,373 shares in the company, valued at $3,042,728. The trade was a 11.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Thomas E. Ferguson sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.29, for a total transaction of $3,182,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 158,182 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,134,986.78. This trade represents a 13.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 33,281 shares of company stock worth $4,239,080. Insiders own 1.77% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AZZ has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $137.00 target price on shares of AZZ in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Noble Financial restated an “outperform” rating on shares of AZZ in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded AZZ from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $127.00 to $132.00 in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded AZZ from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 10th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $125.00 target price on AZZ in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AZZ presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $127.00.

AZZ Profile

AZZ Inc, incorporated in 1956 and headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, is a leading provider of galvanizing and metal finishing solutions alongside electrical equipment and services. The company supports a diverse range of industries—such as energy, infrastructure, heavy equipment and general industrial markets—by delivering corrosion protection and high-performance electrical solutions designed for demanding environments.

AZZ operates two primary business segments. The Global Coatings & Services segment offers hot-dip galvanizing, metal finishing, painting, powder coating and related value-added services to steel fabricators and original equipment manufacturers.