SPX Corporation Stock Upgraded (SPW)

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- SPX Corporation (NYSE:SPW) has been upgraded by TheStreet Ratings from hold to buy. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its revenue growth, increase in net income, growth in earnings per share and largely solid financial position with reasonable debt levels by most measures. We feel these strengths outweigh the fact that the company has had lackluster performance in the stock itself.

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Highlights from the ratings report include:

• SPW's revenue growth has slightly outpaced the industry average of 8.6%. Since the same quarter one year prior, revenues rose by 10.9%. Growth in the company's revenue appears to have helped boost the earnings per share.
• The company, on the basis of net income growth from the same quarter one year ago, has significantly outperformed against the S&P 500 and exceeded that of the Machinery industry average. The net income increased by 38.2% when compared to the same quarter one year prior, rising from $34.30 million to $47.40 million.
• SPX CORP reported significant earnings per share improvement in the most recent quarter compared to the same quarter a year ago. This company has reported somewhat volatile earnings recently. But, we feel it is poised for EPS growth in the coming year. During the past fiscal year, SPX CORP reported lower earnings of $2.68 versus $3.85 in the prior year. This year, the market expects an improvement in earnings ($4.15 versus $2.68).
• The debt-to-equity ratio is somewhat low, currently at 1.00, and is less than that of the industry average, implying that there has been a relatively successful effort in the management of debt levels. Despite the fact that SPW's debt-to-equity ratio is low, the quick ratio, which is currently 0.70, displays a potential problem in covering short-term cash needs.
• The company's current return on equity has slightly decreased from the same quarter one year prior. This implies a minor weakness in the organization. In comparison to the other companies in the Machinery industry and the overall market, SPX CORP's return on equity is significantly below that of the industry average and is below that of the S&P 500.

SPX Corporation provides flow technology products, test and measurement products, thermal equipment and services, and industrial products and services worldwide. The company has a P/E ratio of 22.2, above the average industrial industry P/E ratio of 18.1 and above the S&P 500 P/E ratio of 17.7. SPX has a market cap of $3.08 billion and is part of the industrial goods sector and industrial industry. Shares are up 0.7% year to date as of the close of trading on Thursday.

You can view the full SPX Ratings Report or get investment ideas from our investment research center.

-- Written by a member of TheStreet Ratings Staff

TheStreet ratings do not represent the views of TheStreet's staff or its contributors. Ratings are established by computer based on metrics for performance (which includes growth, stock performance, efficiency and valuation) and risk (volatility and solvency). Companies with poor cash flow or high debt levels tend to earn lower ratings in our model.

 

For more information on SPX Corporation click any of the following:

• SPX Corporation Stock Price

• SPX Corporation Analyst Ratings

• SPX Corporation Key Stats & Profile

• SPX Corporation Earnings

• SPX Corporation Ratio Comparison

• SPX Corporation Growth Rates

• SPX Corporation Balance Sheet

• SPX Corporation Cash Flow

• SPX Corporation Income Statement