Insider Selling: AZZ (NYSE:AZZ) CEO Sells $3,182,250.00 in Stock

AZZ Inc. (NYSE:AZZ) CEO Thomas Ferguson sold 25,000 shares of the 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 owned 158,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,134,986.78. This trade represents a 13.65% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

AZZ Stock Performance

AZZ traded down $0.13 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $127.58. The stock had a trading volume of 209,352 shares, compared to its average volume of 161,352. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $113.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $109.78. The firm has a market cap of $3.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.99 and a beta of 1.13. AZZ Inc. has a one year low of $70.90 and a one year high of $130.69. 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 released its earnings results 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. AZZ had a return on equity of 14.45% and a net margin of 19.89%.The company had revenue of $425.75 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $412.97 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.39 EPS. AZZ’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. AZZ has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.900-6.200 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that AZZ Inc. will post 5.13 EPS for the current year.

AZZ declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Friday, January 30th that permits the company to buyback $100.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the industrial products company to buy up to 2.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

AZZ Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 5th will be paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 5th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. AZZ’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.52%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AZZ

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC lifted its stake in AZZ by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC now owns 18,164 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,947,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of AZZ by 39.6% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 374 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 131 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in AZZ by 55.9% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 382 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System grew its holdings in AZZ by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 8,437 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $921,000 after buying an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.93% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on AZZ. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of AZZ in a report on Monday, December 29th. Robert W. Baird set a $125.00 target price on shares of AZZ in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of AZZ from $128.00 to $121.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded AZZ from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $117.17.

AZZ Company 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.