abrdn plc Raises Stake in AECOM (NYSE:ACM)

abrdn plc boosted its holdings in shares of AECOM (NYSE:ACM) by 18.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,183 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 645 shares during the quarter. abrdn plc’s holdings in AECOM were worth $448,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of AECOM by 0.6% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,270,408 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $233,918,000 after acquiring an additional 14,511 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in AECOM by 17.0% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,989,238 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $205,429,000 after purchasing an additional 289,513 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in AECOM by 40.1% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 768,266 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $79,339,000 after purchasing an additional 220,035 shares during the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. grew its position in AECOM by 5.7% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 585,174 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $60,431,000 after purchasing an additional 31,299 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of AECOM during the 3rd quarter valued at about $42,201,000. 85.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on ACM shares. Citigroup dropped their target price on AECOM from $128.00 to $127.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. StockNews.com raised shares of AECOM from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, October 27th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of AECOM from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. KeyCorp dropped their price target on shares of AECOM from $122.00 to $121.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of AECOM in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $130.00 price objective for the company. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $120.38.

AECOM Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE ACM opened at $106.49 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $14.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.19. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $108.58 and its 200-day simple moving average is $104.70. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. AECOM has a 52-week low of $82.23 and a 52-week high of $118.56.

AECOM (NYSE:ACM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 3rd. The construction company reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.21. AECOM had a return on equity of 26.84% and a net margin of 2.93%. Equities analysts predict that AECOM will post 5.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AECOM Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd were paid a $0.26 dividend. This is an increase from AECOM’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 2nd. AECOM’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.55%.

AECOM announced that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Monday, November 18th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the construction company to reacquire up to 6.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

AECOM Profile

AECOM, together with its subsidiaries, provides professional infrastructure consulting services worldwide. It operates in three segments: Americas, International, and AECOM Capital. The company offers planning, consulting, architectural and engineering design, construction and program management, and investment and development services to public and private clients.