Sciencast Management LP Lowers Position in KBR, Inc. (NYSE:KBR)

Sciencast Management LP cut its holdings in KBR, Inc. (NYSE:KBR) by 57.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 12,820 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 17,121 shares during the quarter. Sciencast Management LP’s holdings in KBR were worth $743,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new stake in shares of KBR during the third quarter valued at about $26,000. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in shares of KBR by 49.2% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 531 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of KBR during the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of KBR during the fourth quarter valued at about $68,000. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of KBR by 507.2% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,603 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $93,000 after buying an additional 1,339 shares during the last quarter. 97.02% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on KBR. KeyCorp decreased their price target on shares of KBR from $70.00 to $67.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of KBR from $82.00 to $76.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on shares of KBR from $75.00 to $64.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of KBR from $72.00 to $64.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $75.88.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Gregory Sean Conlon sold 19,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.59, for a total transaction of $961,210.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 63,533 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,214,134.47. This trade represents a 23.02 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 1.08% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

KBR Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:KBR opened at $50.15 on Friday. KBR, Inc. has a twelve month low of $47.16 and a twelve month high of $72.60. The company’s 50 day moving average is $53.16 and its 200 day moving average is $59.62. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. The company has a market cap of $6.64 billion, a PE ratio of 21.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.86.

KBR (NYSE:KBR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 24th. The construction company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.08. KBR had a net margin of 4.35% and a return on equity of 28.87%. The company had revenue of $2.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2 billion. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that KBR, Inc. will post 3.26 EPS for the current year.

KBR Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.165 dividend. This represents a $0.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from KBR’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. KBR’s dividend payout ratio is 23.57%.

About KBR

KBR, Inc provides scientific, technology, and engineering solutions to governments and commercial customers worldwide. It operates through Government Solutions and Sustainable Technology Solutions segments. The Government Solutions segment offers life-cycle support solutions to defense, intelligence, space, aviation, and other programs and missions for military and other government agencies in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia.