Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management Has $324,000 Holdings in Encore Wire Co. (NASDAQ:WIRE)

Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of Encore Wire Co. (NASDAQ:WIRE) by 3.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,516 shares of the electronics maker’s stock after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management’s holdings in Encore Wire were worth $324,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Encore Wire by 69.2% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 203 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new stake in shares of Encore Wire in the 4th quarter valued at about $99,000. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Encore Wire in the third quarter valued at about $91,000. Strs Ohio raised its position in shares of Encore Wire by 40.0% during the fourth quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 700 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $149,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Black Swift Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Encore Wire in the fourth quarter worth approximately $214,000. Institutional investors own 99.82% of the company’s stock.

Encore Wire Price Performance

Shares of WIRE opened at $280.36 on Friday. Encore Wire Co. has a one year low of $150.51 and a one year high of $295.90. The company has a market cap of $4.43 billion, a PE ratio of 14.87 and a beta of 1.28. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $259.46 and a 200-day moving average of $225.59.

Encore Wire (NASDAQ:WIRE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The electronics maker reported $3.92 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.65 by $0.27. Encore Wire had a return on equity of 17.77% and a net margin of 12.45%. The firm had revenue of $632.66 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $579.64 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $6.50 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Encore Wire Co. will post 21.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Encore Wire Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 5th were issued a dividend of $0.02 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 4th. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.03%. Encore Wire’s payout ratio is 0.42%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WIRE has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. CJS Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Encore Wire in a research report on Friday, April 19th. StockNews.com started coverage on Encore Wire in a report on Friday, May 3rd. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Sidoti reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $290.00 price objective on shares of Encore Wire in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, DA Davidson cut Encore Wire from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $295.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th.

About Encore Wire

Encore Wire Corporation engages in manufacture and sale of electrical building wires and cables in the United States. It offers NM-B cables, UF-B cables, THHN/THWN-2, XHHW-2, USE-2, RHH/RHW-2, and other types of wire products, including SEU, SER, photovoltaic, URD, tray cables, metal-clads, and armored cables.