Trimble moves higher after landing contracts in two cities

Trimble Navigation shares jumped 3, or 8 percent, to 38 1/2 Tuesday after announcing the cities of Honolulu and St. Louis will use its GPS-based automatic vehicle location equipment to track and dispatch public safety vehicles.

Honolulu will use the global positioning system products in 30 emergency medical service vehicles while St. Louis will install the system in 95 fire and rescue vehicles.

Financial terms of the deals were not disclosed.

"Fleet and asset management is a strategic business focus for Trimble," said CEO Steven Berglund in a prepared release. "The potential for GPS as a public safety utility is growing rapidly."

Last quarter, Trimble (Nasdaq: TRMB) easily topped analysts' earnings estimates, raking in $8.7 million, or 35 cents a share, on sales of $65 million.

Its shares quickly scampered to a 52-week high of 40 1/2 earlier this month after falling to a low of 9 in September.

Analysts expect it to earn 33 cents a share in its second quarter and $1.33 a share in the fiscal year.

All three analysts following the stock rate it either a "buy" or "strong buy."