BNP Paribas Exane Initiates Coverage on Parsons (NYSE:PSN)

Research analysts at BNP Paribas Exane started coverage on shares of Parsons (NYSE:PSN) in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday. The firm set an “underperform” rating on the stock.

Several other research firms have also commented on PSN. UBS Group cut their price target on Parsons from $104.00 to $95.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of Parsons in a research note on Monday, April 13th. KeyCorp cut Parsons from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Parsons in a report on Sunday, May 3rd. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on Parsons from $78.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $78.17.

Parsons Stock Up 2.6%

Shares of NYSE PSN traded up $1.38 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $55.09. 343,637 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,264,805. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.75 and a quick ratio of 1.75. Parsons has a twelve month low of $48.23 and a twelve month high of $89.50. The company has a market cap of $5.89 billion, a PE ratio of 26.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.60. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $53.09 and its 200-day simple moving average is $64.13.

Parsons (NYSE:PSN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.79 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $1.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.50 billion. Parsons had a return on equity of 11.52% and a net margin of 3.62%.The firm’s revenue was down 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.60 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Parsons will post 2.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Parsons news, Director George L. Ball purchased 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $50.00 per share, for a total transaction of $500,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 150,383 shares in the company, valued at $7,519,150. The trade was a 7.12% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Mark Keith Holdsworth purchased 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $51.27 per share, for a total transaction of $512,700.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 39,918 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,046,595.86. This represents a 33.42% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders purchased 32,500 shares of company stock worth $1,637,325. 1.31% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Parsons by 38.0% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 959 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 264 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its position in shares of Parsons by 433.9% in the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,260 shares of the company’s stock worth $75,000 after buying an additional 1,024 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Parsons in the second quarter worth $228,000. Prudential Financial Inc. boosted its position in shares of Parsons by 40.9% in the second quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 5,945 shares of the company’s stock worth $427,000 after buying an additional 1,725 shares during the period. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its position in shares of Parsons by 176.0% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 828 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 528 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.02% of the company’s stock.

About Parsons

Parsons Corporation (NYSE: PSN) is a technology-driven engineering, construction, technical and professional services firm. The company delivers end-to-end solutions that span feasibility studies, design and engineering, construction management, system integration and ongoing operations support. Parsons serves both government and commercial clients and focuses on critical infrastructure, defense, security, intelligence and environmental programs.

Core services include program and construction management for transportation systems, water and environmental infrastructure, cybersecurity and advanced systems integration.