Aspen Technology Inc

NASDAQ:AZPNUnited States

Al Root Manufacturing stocks fell hard to start the week, responding to weak economic data and a cooling job market. Fear of the "R" word is creeping in. A recession is a risk, but investors in manufacturing shouldn't necessarily bail out. There are pockets of strength to hang onto. The Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF dropped 0.2% on Tuesday, responding to a government survey showing fewer job openings than economists had expected. The ETF fell 1.2% on Monday after data from the Institute for Supply Management indicated manufacturing contracted for the second straight month in May and for the 18th month out of the past 19. Two consecutive declines can be a signal to investors, but the magnitude of both drops understate the severity of recent trading. Investors dumped the strongest performers -- a sign they are thinking about reducing overall exposure to manufacturing stocks. Take GE Vernova. Through midday trading Wednesday, its shares were down more than 7% for the week. Coming into the week, Vernova stock was up more than 50% from initial trades just before the company was spun out of GE Aerospace. GE Aerospace shares dropped almost 4% at points on Monday and shares were down more than 2% for the week. Still, the declines leave shares up almost 60% so far in 2024. Other strong year-to-date performers that took it on the chin include Cummins, Caterpillar, United Rentals, Eaton, Hubbell, and Parker Hannifin shares. "There are parts of manufacturing that are struggling," says Stephanie Link, chief investment officer at investment advisor Hightower Advisors. "There are places within industrials that are very long-term, strong themes." Commercial aerospace and higher demand for electricity from artificial intelligence computing, home heating and cooling, and electric vehicles are two durable themes investors can look to, she says. Along those lines, UBS still calls GE Aerospace a top pick for 2024. "We see earnings and valuation upside, driven by GE Aerospace's [high] exposure to recurring Aerospace aftermarket and dominant narrow-body engine position," wrote analyst Gavin Parsons in a Monday report. A narrow-body jet is a single-aisle plane such as a Boeing 737 MAX. GE engines power about 75% of all narrow-body flights around the globe. Parsons' view is shared by others on Wall Street. Overall, 85% of analysts covering the stock rate shares Buy. The average Buy-rating ratio for stocks in the S&P 500 is about 55%. The only higher-rated aerospace stock in the Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF is materials supplier Howmet Aerospace. About 87% of analysts covering the company rate shares Buy. The next highest-rated aerospace stock is parts supplier TransDigm. About 71% of analysts covering the stock rate the shares at Buy. Those are three aerospace stocks Wall Street is comfortable holding. As for electrification, UBS analyst Steven Fisher calls Primoris Services a top pick. "The visibility to Primoris' earnings growth is underappreciated by investors," he wrote in a Monday report. "Owning (1) its history as primarily an Oil and Gas contractor, it is not widely known by investors as a renewables/grid contractor, and (2) several years of earnings volatility due to challenges with execution and integrating acquisitions." U.S. electricity demand grew 0.4% a year on average between 2013 and 2023, wrote BofA Securities analyst Andrew Obin in a Monday report. He projects 2.8% average annual growth between 2023 and 2030. Shares of three companies he rates Buy that benefit from growing demand for electricity are the electrical components supplier Eaton, process automation software provider Aspen Technology, and Vertiv, a provider of infrastructure for data centers. Through midday trading on Wednesday, those seven stocks tied to the growth of commercial air travel and electricity demand were up an average of almost 50% year to date. They traded for an average of about 28 times the per-share earnings they are expected to produce in 2025. That might give some investors pause, given that the S&P 500 trades for closer to 19 times estimated 2025 earnings. Wall Street, however, recommends holding the winners in case the economy starts to wobble. The Industrial Select ETF rebounded on Wednesday, though it didn't quite match the gain in the broader market. It was up about 0.7% in late trading, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite were up 0.9% and 1.6%, respectively. Corrections & Amplifications Stephanie Link is chief investment officer at Hightower Advisors. An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated her firm as Hightower Associates. Write to Al Root at allen.root@dowjones.com This content was created by Barron's, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. Barron's is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal. (END) Dow Jones Newswires June 06, 2024 08:23 ET (12:23 GMT)

Al Root Manufacturing stocks fell hard to start the week, responding to weak economic data and a cooling job market. Fear of the "R" word is creeping in. A recession is a risk, but investors in manufacturing shouldn't necessarily bail out. There are pockets of strength to hang onto. The Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF dropped 0.2% on Tuesday, responding to a government survey showing fewer job openings than economists had expected. The ETF fell 1.2% on Monday after data from the Institute for Supply Management indicated manufacturing contracted for the second straight month in May and for the 18th month out of the past 19. Two consecutive declines can be a signal to investors, but the magnitude of both drops understate the severity of recent trading. Investors dumped the strongest performers -- a sign they are thinking about reducing overall exposure to manufacturing stocks. Take GE Vernova. Through midday trading Wednesday, its shares were down more than 7% for the week. Coming into the week, Vernova stock was up more than 50% from initial trades just before the company was spun out of GE Aerospace. GE Aerospace shares dropped almost 4% at points on Monday and shares were down more than 2% for the week. Still, the declines leave shares up almost 60% so far in 2024. Other strong year-to-date performers that took it on the chin include Cummins, Caterpillar, United Rentals, Eaton, Hubbell, and Parker Hannifin shares. "There are parts of manufacturing that are struggling," says Stephanie Link, chief investment officer at investment advisor Hightower Advisors. "There are places within industrials that are very long-term, strong themes." Commercial aerospace and higher demand for electricity from artificial intelligence computing, home heating and cooling, and electric vehicles are two durable themes investors can look to, she says. Along those lines, UBS still calls GE Aerospace a top pick for 2024. "We see earnings and valuation upside, driven by GE Aerospace's [high] exposure to recurring Aerospace aftermarket and dominant narrow-body engine position," wrote analyst Gavin Parsons in a Monday report. A narrow-body jet is a single-aisle plane such as a Boeing 737 MAX. GE engines power about 75% of all narrow-body flights around the globe. Parsons' view is shared by others on Wall Street. Overall, 85% of analysts covering the stock rate shares Buy. The average Buy-rating ratio for stocks in the S&P 500 is about 55%. The only higher-rated aerospace stock in the Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF is materials supplier Howmet Aerospace. About 87% of analysts covering the company rate shares Buy. The next highest-rated aerospace stock is parts supplier TransDigm. About 71% of analysts covering the stock rate the shares at Buy. Those are three aerospace stocks Wall Street is comfortable holding. As for electrification, UBS analyst Steven Fisher calls Primoris Services a top pick. "The visibility to Primoris' earnings growth is underappreciated by investors," he wrote in a Monday report. "Owning (1) its history as primarily an Oil and Gas contractor, it is not widely known by investors as a renewables/grid contractor, and (2) several years of earnings volatility due to challenges with execution and integrating acquisitions." U.S. electricity demand grew 0.4% a year on average between 2013 and 2023, wrote BofA Securities analyst Andrew Obin in a Monday report. He projects 2.8% average annual growth between 2023 and 2030. Shares of three companies he rates Buy that benefit from growing demand for electricity are the electrical components supplier Eaton, process automation software provider Aspen Technology, and Vertiv, a provider of infrastructure for data centers. Through midday trading on Wednesday, those seven stocks tied to the growth of commercial air travel and electricity demand were up an average of almost 50% year to date. They traded for an average of about 28 times the per-share earnings they are expected to produce in 2025. That might give some investors pause, given that the S&P 500 trades for closer to 19 times estimated 2025 earnings. Wall Street, however, recommends holding the winners in case the economy starts to wobble. The Industrial Select ETF rebounded on Wednesday, though it didn't quite match the gain in the broader market. It was up about 0.7% in late trading, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite were up 0.9% and 1.6%, respectively. Corrections & Amplifications This article was corrected on June 6, 2024 to clarify that Stephanie Link is chief investment officer at Hightower Advisors. An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated her firm as Hightower Associates. (END) Dow Jones Newswires June 05, 2024 14:51 ET (18:51 GMT)

aspenONE(R) , including expanded Industrial AI, helps customers measurably impact performance and sustainability goals
BEDFORD, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 29, 2024--
Aspen Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:AZPN), a global leader in industrial software, today introduced new and expanded capabilities now available in aspenONE(R) , the company's portfolio of asset optimization solutions, spanning design, operations and maintenance. The latest version of aspenONE, V14.3 May 2024, helps customers achieve new levels of operational excellence with expanded Industrial AI throughout the portfolio, additional integration of industrial data management across solutions and advancements in planning and scheduling capabilities.