Ituran Location and Control Ltd. (NASDAQ:ITRN) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Ituran Location and Control Ltd. (NASDAQ:ITRN) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the five ratings firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $60.6667.

Several equities analysts have issued reports on ITRN shares. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Ituran Location and Control to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Maxim Group assumed coverage on shares of Ituran Location and Control in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $70.00 price target on the stock. Loop Capital set a $57.00 target price on shares of Ituran Location and Control in a report on Monday, March 9th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Ituran Location and Control from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Ituran Location and Control in a report on Wednesday, May 27th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Y.D. More Investments Ltd increased its stake in shares of Ituran Location and Control by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 858,274 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $37,236,000 after acquiring an additional 39,718 shares in the last quarter. J.M. Arbour LLC purchased a new position in Ituran Location and Control during the 4th quarter worth $881,000. CSM Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ituran Location and Control by 30.2% in the 3rd quarter. CSM Advisors LLC now owns 125,435 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,480,000 after buying an additional 29,090 shares during the last quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ituran Location and Control in the 3rd quarter worth about $1,911,000. Finally, Total Wealth Planning & Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ituran Location and Control in the 4th quarter worth about $689,000. Institutional investors own 94.80% of the company’s stock.

Ituran Location and Control Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ITRN opened at $63.75 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $1.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.04 and a beta of 0.77. Ituran Location and Control has a 52-week low of $32.71 and a 52-week high of $68.30. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $60.46 and its 200-day moving average is $51.43.

Ituran Location and Control (NASDAQ:ITRN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 26th. The industrial products company reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.05. Ituran Location and Control had a net margin of 16.03% and a return on equity of 27.70%. The company had revenue of $102.67 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $95.32 million. As a group, equities analysts predict that Ituran Location and Control will post 3.5 EPS for the current year.

Ituran Location and Control Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 24th will be given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 24th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Ituran Location and Control’s payout ratio is presently 198.02%.

About Ituran Location and Control

Ituran Location and Control Ltd. is a provider of wireless vehicle tracking and stolen vehicle recovery services. The company leverages a combination of cellular and global positioning system (GPS) technologies to offer real-time monitoring and location-based solutions for private vehicle owners, fleet operators and insurance companies. Its core offerings include subscription-based tracking devices, centralized control centers and software platforms that enable clients to detect unauthorized vehicle use, dispatch recovery teams and manage fleet logistics.

Founded in 1994 in Israel, Ituran pioneered the use of wireless communications for security and telematics applications.