Xylem Inc. $XYL Stock Sold by Pictet Asset Management Holding SA

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lowered its stake in Xylem Inc. (NYSE:XYL) by 19.1% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 3,267,986 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 771,785 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in Xylem were worth $330,947,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in XYL. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of Xylem in the second quarter worth approximately $2,959,730,000. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Xylem by 2.4% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 11,444,669 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,352,874,000 after buying an additional 270,972 shares during the period. XXEC Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Xylem in the second quarter worth $850,841,000. Royal Bank of Canada raised its holdings in Xylem by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 4,763,241 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $569,207,000 after buying an additional 53,210 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in Xylem during the 2nd quarter valued at $552,313,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director D Koch acquired 11,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 29th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $89.60 per share, for a total transaction of $985,600.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 12,247 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,097,331.20. This trade represents a 882.12% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.32% of the company’s stock.

Xylem Price Performance

XYL opened at $97.88 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.39. Xylem Inc. has a 52-week low of $87.40 and a 52-week high of $152.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.45 billion, a PE ratio of 21.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.01. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $103.56 and its 200-day moving average price is $116.48.

Xylem (NYSE:XYL) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The industrial products company reported $1.44 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.45 by ($0.01). Xylem had a net margin of 11.94% and a return on equity of 12.06%. The business had revenue of $2.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.28 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.37 EPS. Xylem’s revenue was down 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Xylem Inc. will post 5.45 EPS for the current year.

Xylem Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 27th were given a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 27th. Xylem’s payout ratio is presently 38.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on XYL shares. Mizuho set a $99.00 price target on shares of Xylem in a research report on Wednesday, October 28th. Barclays cut shares of Xylem from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $139.00 to $104.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 28th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Xylem from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 24th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Xylem in a report on Tuesday, September 15th. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on Xylem from $135.00 to $125.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $121.31.

Xylem Company Profile

Xylem Inc is a water technology company that develops equipment, software and services for managing water and wastewater. Its offerings include pumps and treatment systems, water-quality testing and analysis, smart meters, monitoring and control technologies, and services for detecting leaks and maintaining water infrastructure.

The company serves water and wastewater utilities, industrial and commercial customers, and residential markets. Its technologies support the movement, treatment, testing and efficient use of water across municipal and industrial systems.

Xylem was established in 2011 when it became an independent company following its spin-off from ITT Corporation.