Crawford Investment Counsel Inc. Has $12.70 Million Stock Holdings in AZZ Inc. $AZZ

Crawford Investment Counsel Inc. decreased its stake in AZZ Inc. (NYSE:AZZ) by 3.7% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 116,353 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 4,415 shares during the quarter. Crawford Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in AZZ were worth $12,698,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in shares of AZZ by 8.8% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 12,619 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,055,000 after acquiring an additional 1,024 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of AZZ by 26.2% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 6,213 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $519,000 after acquiring an additional 1,290 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its position in AZZ by 4.6% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 17,488 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,462,000 after purchasing an additional 771 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its stake in AZZ by 21.7% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 84,076 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $7,030,000 after purchasing an additional 14,965 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC grew its stake in AZZ by 185.9% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 51,122 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,274,000 after purchasing an additional 33,238 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.93% of the company’s stock.

AZZ Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AZZ opened at $124.03 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.66 and a beta of 1.11. The business has a 50-day moving average of $127.48 and a two-hundred day moving average of $113.93. AZZ Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $70.90 and a fifty-two week high of $141.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 1.21.

AZZ (NYSE:AZZ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 7th. The industrial products company reported $1.52 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.09. AZZ had a return on equity of 14.45% and a net margin of 19.89%.The business had revenue of $425.75 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $412.97 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.39 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. AZZ has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.900-6.200 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that AZZ Inc. will post 5.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AZZ Announces Dividend

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

AZZ declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Friday, January 30th that allows the company to repurchase $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the industrial products company to purchase up to 2.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Insider Buying and Selling

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

About AZZ

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.