VSE Corporation (NASDAQ:VSEC) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus on VSE, with eight buy ratings, one strong-buy rating and four holds. The average 12-month price target is $252.22, implying potential upside from the reported $180.77 share price.
• VSE significantly exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $1.75 in EPS versus the $0.93 consensus and $449.14 million in revenue, up 65% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.10 per share, equivalent to $0.40 annually and a 0.2% yield; institutional investors own 91.54% of outstanding shares.

VSE Corporation (NASDAQ:VSEC - Get Free Report) has been given an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the thirteen ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $252.22.

Several analysts recently weighed in on VSEC shares. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $275.00 price objective on shares of VSE in a research note on Sunday, August 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on VSE from $240.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Guggenheim assumed coverage on VSE in a research report on Monday, September 14th. They issued a "neutral" rating on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on VSE from $245.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised VSE from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th.

VSE Stock Up 0.2%

NASDAQ:VSEC opened at $180.77 on Friday. VSE has a one year low of $154.67 and a one year high of $247.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 3.77 and a quick ratio of 1.30. The company has a market cap of $5.07 billion, a PE ratio of 57.94, a P/E/G ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 1.24. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $205.30 and its 200 day simple moving average is $198.69.

VSE (NASDAQ:VSEC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The construction company reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.82. The firm had revenue of $449.14 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $425.03 million. VSE had a net margin of 6.17% and a return on equity of 6.71%. The company's revenue was up 65.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.97 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that VSE will post 6.75 earnings per share for the current year.

VSE Announces Dividend

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other VSE news, CEO John Cuomo sold 1,566 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $187.49, for a total transaction of $293,609.34. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 167,971 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $31,492,882.79. This represents a 0.92% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate 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 the company. WINTON GROUP Ltd acquired a new position in VSE in the second quarter valued at $2,545,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC grew its holdings in VSE by 5.0% during the 2nd quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 5,119 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,170,000 after acquiring an additional 245 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in VSE by 158.0% during the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 129 shares of the construction company's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the period. Nykredit A S bought a new position in shares of VSE in the 2nd quarter worth about $177,000. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LP bought a new position in shares of VSE in the 2nd quarter worth about $4,923,000. 91.54% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.

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