Bahl & Gaynor Inc. Trims Holdings in Emerson Electric Co. (NYSE:EMR)

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. decreased its holdings in Emerson Electric Co. (NYSE:EMR) by 0.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 182,846 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,209 shares during the period. Bahl & Gaynor Inc.’s holdings in Emerson Electric were worth $17,796,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of EMR. Waverly Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Emerson Electric by 100.2% during the third quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 15,117 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,460,000 after buying an additional 7,565 shares during the period. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC purchased a new position in Emerson Electric in the fourth quarter valued at about $241,000. FMR LLC grew its stake in Emerson Electric by 1.3% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,233,697 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $312,278,000 after purchasing an additional 41,263 shares during the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Emerson Electric in the third quarter valued at about $320,000. Finally, Capital Advisors Inc. OK grew its stake in Emerson Electric by 821.0% in the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Inc. OK now owns 86,231 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,393,000 after purchasing an additional 76,868 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.30% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on EMR. Bank of America lifted their target price on Emerson Electric from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 4th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Emerson Electric from $106.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Berenberg Bank raised their price target on Emerson Electric from $100.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Mizuho raised their price target on Emerson Electric from $118.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on Emerson Electric from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $116.25.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Mark A. Blinn sold 2,413 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.18, for a total value of $248,973.34. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 9,591 shares in the company, valued at $989,599.38. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Emerson Electric Stock Performance

Shares of Emerson Electric stock traded up $0.27 on Friday, reaching $109.87. 1,364,492 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,603,198. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Emerson Electric Co. has a twelve month low of $76.94 and a twelve month high of $115.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $62.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.72, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.37. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $110.38 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $99.28.

Emerson Electric (NYSE:EMR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The industrial products company reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.04 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $4.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.91 billion. Emerson Electric had a return on equity of 11.59% and a net margin of 69.33%. Emerson Electric’s quarterly revenue was up 22.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.78 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Emerson Electric Co. will post 5.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Emerson Electric Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Investors of record on Friday, February 16th were given a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 15th. Emerson Electric’s dividend payout ratio is currently 10.94%.

About Emerson Electric

Emerson Electric Co, a technology and software company, provides various solutions for customers in industrial, commercial, and consumer markets in the Americas, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Europe. It operates in six segments: Final Control, Control Systems & Software, Measurement & Analytical, AspenTech, Discrete Automation, and Safety & Productivity.