VSE (NASDAQ:VSEC) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of VSE (NASDAQ:VSEC) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report report published on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Jefferies Financial Group set a $260.00 price objective on shares of VSE in a research note on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley began coverage on VSE in a research note on Friday, June 26th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $245.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on shares of VSE from $220.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings lowered VSE from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of VSE in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, VSE presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $241.44.

VSE Stock Performance

NASDAQ VSEC opened at $221.06 on Monday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $192.92 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $197.73. VSE has a 1-year low of $123.69 and a 1-year high of $240.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 8.78 and a quick ratio of 6.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.20 billion, a PE ratio of 93.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 1.21.

VSE (NASDAQ:VSEC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The construction company reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.24. VSE had a net margin of 4.95% and a return on equity of 6.56%. The company had revenue of $324.58 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $309.19 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.78 earnings per share. VSE’s quarterly revenue was up 26.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that VSE will post 4.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

VSE Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 29th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 15th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.2%. VSE’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 16.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other VSE news, COO Benjamin E. Thomas sold 6,500 shares of VSE stock in a transaction on Friday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $196.82, for a total value of $1,279,330.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 42,839 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,431,571.98. The trade was a 13.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate 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 the stock. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of VSE by 145.7% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 258 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of VSE by 89.0% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 276 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $63,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in VSE during the first quarter worth $247,000. Ellevest Inc. purchased a new stake in VSE in the 4th quarter valued at about $323,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of VSE by 17.1% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,207 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $381,000 after acquiring an additional 323 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.54% of the company’s stock.

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.