Brandes Investment Partners LP Decreases Holdings in Emerson Electric Co. (NYSE:EMR)

Brandes Investment Partners LP reduced its stake in shares of Emerson Electric Co. (NYSE:EMR) by 2.0% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 953,171 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 19,724 shares during the quarter. Emerson Electric makes up 1.3% of Brandes Investment Partners LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest position. Brandes Investment Partners LP’s holdings in Emerson Electric were worth $118,126,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of EMR. Stephens Consulting LLC acquired a new position in shares of Emerson Electric during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Emerson Electric during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Emerson Electric during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. YANKCOM Partnership acquired a new position in shares of Emerson Electric during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Frazier Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Emerson Electric during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. 74.30% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Emerson Electric Stock Up 2.7 %

Shares of Emerson Electric stock opened at $112.11 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $122.37 and a 200 day moving average price of $118.75. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. Emerson Electric Co. has a twelve month low of $96.62 and a twelve month high of $134.85. The stock has a market cap of $63.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.36.

Emerson Electric (NYSE:EMR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.10. Emerson Electric had a net margin of 13.74% and a return on equity of 12.08%. Equities research analysts forecast that Emerson Electric Co. will post 5.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Emerson Electric Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a $0.5275 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.11 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.88%. Emerson Electric’s payout ratio is currently 50.36%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on EMR. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $138.00 price target on shares of Emerson Electric in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Daiwa Capital Markets began coverage on Emerson Electric in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $147.00 price target for the company. Loop Capital boosted their price target on Emerson Electric from $130.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Emerson Electric from $105.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Emerson Electric from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $136.28.

Emerson Electric Profile

Emerson Electric Co, a technology and software company, provides various solutions for customers in industrial, commercial, and consumer markets in the Americas, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Europe. It operates in six segments: Final Control, Control Systems & Software, Measurement & Analytical, AspenTech, Discrete Automation, and Safety & Productivity.