Generac (NYSE:GNRC) Downgraded by Citigroup to Neutral

Generac (NYSE:GNRC) was downgraded by Citigroup from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note issued on Thursday. They presently have a $237.00 target price on the technology company’s stock. Citigroup’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 11.48% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Needham & Company LLC started coverage on Generac in a report on Monday, January 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $211.00 price target on the stock. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Generac from $220.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $270.00 price target on shares of Generac in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Robert W. Baird set a $292.00 price objective on Generac in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Generac from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $200.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, December 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Generac presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $222.06.

Generac Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:GNRC opened at $212.60 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $188.62 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $174.23. The company has a market cap of $12.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 79.33, a PEG ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 2.03 and a quick ratio of 1.00. Generac has a one year low of $99.50 and a one year high of $241.09.

Generac (NYSE:GNRC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The technology company reported $1.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.81 by ($0.20). The business had revenue of $1.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.16 billion. Generac had a return on equity of 14.55% and a net margin of 3.79%.The company’s quarterly revenue was down 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.80 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Generac will post 8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO York A. Ragen sold 24,362 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $235.61, for a total transaction of $5,739,930.82. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 137,182 shares in the company, valued at $32,321,451.02. This trade represents a 15.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 2.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in Generac by 49.9% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,423,971 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $330,557,000 after buying an additional 806,430 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can increased its position in shares of Generac by 1,141.1% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 695,600 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $94,859,000 after acquiring an additional 639,551 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in shares of Generac by 127.0% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 959,337 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $130,825,000 after acquiring an additional 536,732 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Generac during the fourth quarter worth about $68,590,000. Finally, Robeco Schweiz AG bought a new stake in shares of Generac in the fourth quarter worth about $51,020,000. Institutional investors own 84.04% of the company’s stock.

Generac Company Profile

Generac Holdings Inc (NYSE: GNRC) is a leading manufacturer of backup power generation products for residential, commercial and industrial applications. The company offers a comprehensive portfolio of standby and portable generators, transfer switches and power management systems designed to provide reliable electricity during power outages and other critical situations. With an emphasis on innovation, Generac has expanded its offerings to include clean energy technologies such as battery storage and integrated solar-plus-storage systems.

Generac’s product lineup addresses a broad range of customer needs.