VSE (NASDAQ:VSEC) Shares Down 6.3% – Here’s What Happened

VSE Corporation (NASDAQ:VSEC)’s stock price traded down 6.3% on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $178.28 and last traded at $175.7620. 56,430 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 89% from the average daily volume of 535,268 shares. The stock had previously closed at $187.61.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VSEC has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup lifted their target price on VSE from $263.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Zacks Research lowered VSE from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Guggenheim assumed coverage on VSE in a report on Monday. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on VSE from $240.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $230.00 target price on VSE in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $252.22.

VSE Trading Down 5.4%

The company has a market cap of $4.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.85, a P/E/G ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 1.24. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $210.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $201.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 3.77.

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, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.82. VSE had a return on equity of 6.71% and a net margin of 6.17%.The business had revenue of $449.14 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $425.03 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.97 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 65.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that VSE Corporation will post 6.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

VSE Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 15th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.2%. VSE’s payout ratio is presently 12.82%.

Insider Buying and Selling at VSE

In other news, CEO John Cuomo sold 17,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.49, for a total value of $4,243,575.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 169,537 shares in the company, valued at approximately $41,111,027.13. This trade represents a 9.36% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On VSE

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of VSEC. Emerald Advisers LLC raised its stake in VSE by 12.6% during the first quarter. Emerald Advisers LLC now owns 314,789 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $58,047,000 after acquiring an additional 35,246 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in VSE in the second quarter valued at approximately $44,103,000. Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust boosted its stake 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 acquiring an additional 27,563 shares during the period. American Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of VSE during the second quarter valued at approximately $29,461,000. Finally, Bamco Inc. NY bought a new position in shares of VSE during the second quarter valued at approximately $22,888,000. Institutional investors own 91.54% of the company’s stock.

About VSE

VSE Corporation (NASDAQ: VSEC) is a diversified provider of aftermarket distribution, logistics, maintenance, repair and overhaul, and engineering services. The company primarily serves the U.S. government, commercial aviation operators, aerospace manufacturers, and fleet customers through specialized operating businesses.

VSE’s Federal and Defense operations support the U.S. Department of Defense and other government agencies with supply-chain management, equipment sustainment, modernization, engineering, and logistics services.