VSE Corporation (NASDAQ:VSEC) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of VSE Corporation (NASDAQ:VSEC) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eight have issued a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $252.2222.

VSEC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on VSE from $245.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. B. Riley Financial reissued a “buy” rating on shares of VSE in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley set a $230.00 price target on shares of VSE in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of VSE from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $275.00 price target on shares of VSE in a report on Sunday.

Insider Buying and Selling at VSE

In related news, COO Benjamin E. Thomas sold 6,500 shares of VSE stock in a transaction on Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $196.82, for a total value of $1,279,330.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 42,839 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,431,571.98. This trade represents a 13.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On VSE

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VSEC. Emerald Advisers LLC grew its holdings in shares of VSE by 12.6% during the 1st quarter. Emerald Advisers LLC now owns 314,789 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $58,047,000 after purchasing an additional 35,246 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky acquired a new stake in VSE during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,276,000. Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust raised its holdings in VSE by 16.4% in the first quarter. Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust now owns 195,915 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $36,127,000 after buying an additional 27,563 shares during the period. Argent Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in VSE by 58.8% in the first quarter. Argent Capital Management LLC now owns 7,927 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,462,000 after buying an additional 2,934 shares during the period. Finally, Chase Investment Counsel Corp acquired a new position in VSE during the second quarter valued at approximately $4,527,000. 91.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

VSE Stock Down 4.8%

VSEC stock opened at $230.90 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $209.12 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $200.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 3.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 74.01, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.23. VSE has a one year low of $154.67 and a one year high of $247.85.

VSE (NASDAQ:VSEC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The construction company reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.82. The company had revenue of $449.14 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $425.03 million. VSE had a return on equity of 6.71% and a net margin of 6.17%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 65.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.97 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that VSE will post 4.8 EPS for the current year.

VSE Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 15th will be given a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 15th. VSE’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.82%.

VSE Company Profile

VSE Corporation (NASDAQ: VSEC) is a provider of aftermarket distribution and supply chain management services serving both government and commercial markets. The company’s solutions span a wide range of industries, with particular emphasis on defense, aerospace and transportation. VSE’s core mission is to ensure mission readiness by delivering critical parts, maintenance and technical support for equipment throughout its lifecycle.

Through its Distribution Services segment, VSE sources, markets and distributes replacement parts and components for commercial truck, bus, rail and specialty vehicle applications.