Royal Bank Of Canada Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for VSE (NASDAQ:VSEC) Stock

VSE (NASDAQ:VSEC) had its price target increased by Royal Bank Of Canada from $220.00 to $225.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “outperform” rating on the construction company’s stock. Royal Bank Of Canada‘s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 30.56% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of VSE from $245.00 to $215.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 16th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of VSE from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Guggenheim began coverage on shares of VSE in a research note on Monday, September 14th. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of VSE in a report on Friday, October 16th. Finally, Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of VSE in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, VSE has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $254.00.

VSE Stock Up 4.6%

Shares of VSEC traded up $7.62 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $172.34. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 296,217 shares, compared to its average volume of 535,531. The firm has a market cap of $4.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.00, a P/E/G ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 1.26. VSE has a 1-year low of $138.85 and a 1-year high of $247.85. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 3.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The company has a 50 day moving average of $174.00 and a two-hundred day moving average of $195.25.

VSE (NASDAQ:VSEC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The construction company reported $2.01 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.76 by $0.25. VSE had a net margin of 7.87% and a return on equity of 7.58%. The business had revenue of $541.01 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $512.13 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.99 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 91.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that VSE will post 6.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at VSE

In other VSE news, CEO John Cuomo sold 17,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.49, for a total transaction of $4,243,575.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 169,537 shares in the company, valued at $41,111,027.13. This trade represents a 9.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Allworth Financial LP lifted its holdings in VSE by 158.0% in the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 129 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings in VSE by 5.4% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,764 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $291,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new position in VSE during the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of VSE by 89.0% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 276 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $63,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the period. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its position in shares of VSE by 6.3% in the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,178 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $350,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the period. 91.54% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About VSE

VSE Corporation is a diversified provider of aftermarket distribution, maintenance, repair, overhaul, engineering, logistics and other sustainment services for government and commercial customers. The company supports complex assets and supply chains, with activities spanning aviation, defense, transportation and fleet markets.

Through its aviation businesses, VSE distributes aircraft parts and provides maintenance, repair and overhaul services for commercial, general aviation, business and government aircraft.