Itron upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Baird

Baird upgraded Itron to Outperform from Neutral with a price target of $108, up from $68. The company reported Q4 and 2023 results which beat estimates across the board as improving component availability and a favorable product mix drove higher margins, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm says several recent partnerships in the Networks and Outcomes segments should continue to drive margin improvement longer term as utilities seek to leverage artificial intelligence-enabled data management offerings. It views ITRI as a way to play AI and sees upside to margins in 2025.