Vestis (NYSE:VSTS) Shares Up 7.1% – Should You Buy?

Vestis Corporation (NYSE:VSTS) shares were up 7.1% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $16.58 and last traded at $16.6150. Approximately 625,100 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 62% from the average daily volume of 1,660,889 shares. The stock had previously closed at $15.51.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VSTS has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Vestis from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Vestis from $6.00 to $9.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Vestis from $10.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. William Blair raised shares of Vestis from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Vestis from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $9.50.

Vestis Stock Up 0.9%

The business has a 50-day moving average of $13.22 and a 200-day moving average of $9.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.69 and a current ratio of 2.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -118.29 and a beta of 0.98.

Vestis (NYSE:VSTS) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 12th. The company reported $0.16 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $659.44 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $655.32 million. Vestis had a negative net margin of 0.63% and a positive return on equity of 5.27%. Vestis’s revenue for the quarter was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.05) earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Vestis Corporation will post 0.52 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vestis

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in VSTS. Corvex Management LP raised its position in Vestis by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. Corvex Management LP now owns 19,813,963 shares of the company’s stock valued at $132,159,000 after purchasing an additional 1,010,064 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Vestis by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,960,651 shares of the company’s stock worth $66,438,000 after buying an additional 346,736 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in shares of Vestis by 1,520.5% during the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 5,688,399 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,942,000 after buying an additional 5,337,380 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Vestis by 19.8% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 5,593,129 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,049,000 after buying an additional 923,459 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Greenstone Partners & Co. LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vestis in the fourth quarter valued at $33,979,000. 97.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vestis Company Profile

Vestis Corporation provides uniform rentals and workplace supplies in the United States and Canada. Its products include uniform options, such as shirts, pants, outerwear, gowns, scrubs, high visibility garments, particulate-free garments, and flame-resistant garments, as well as shoes and accessories; and workplace supplies, including managed restroom supply services, first-aid supplies and safety products, floor mats, towels, and linens. The company serves manufacturing, hospitality, retail, food processing, food service, pharmaceuticals, healthcare, automotive, and cleanroom industries.