American Capital Management Inc. Buys New Shares in VSE Corporation $VSEC

Key Points

• American Capital Management acquired 128,934 VSE shares worth approximately $29.5 million, representing 0.46% of the company and 1.3% of the fund’s portfolio. Institutional investors collectively own 91.54% of VSE.
• VSE reported strong quarterly results, with revenue rising 65% year over year to $449.1 million and earnings of $1.75 per share, beating analyst estimates of $0.93.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with an average “Moderate Buy” rating and a $252.22 price target. Meanwhile, the CEO and COO recently sold shares, and VSE announced a quarterly dividend of $0.10 per share.

American Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of VSE Corporation (NASDAQ:VSEC - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 128,934 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $29,461,000. VSE comprises approximately 1.3% of American Capital Management Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 29th largest position. American Capital Management Inc. owned 0.46% of VSE as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Freestone Grove Partners LP bought a new stake in shares of VSE in the 2nd quarter valued at about $18,721,000. Jupiter Topco LLC bought a new position in VSE during the second quarter worth about $2,783,000. J. Goldman & Co LP bought a new position in VSE during the second quarter worth about $3,039,000. Expect Equity LLC acquired a new position in VSE during the second quarter worth approximately $3,111,000. Finally, Primecap Management Co. CA acquired a new position in VSE during the second quarter worth approximately $11,996,000. 91.54% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Benjamin E. Thomas sold 6,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $196.82, for a total transaction of $1,279,330.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 42,839 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,431,571.98. This represents a 13.17% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO John A. Cuomo sold 17,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.49, for a total value of $4,243,575.00. Following the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 1.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

VSE Trading Up 4.2%

VSEC stock opened at $226.90 on Thursday. VSE Corporation has a 52 week low of $154.67 and a 52 week high of $247.85. The company has a market capitalization of $6.37 billion, a PE ratio of 72.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.23. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $216.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $202.01. 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 - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The construction company reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.82. VSE had a net margin of 6.17% and a return on equity of 6.71%. The business had revenue of $449.14 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $425.03 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.97 EPS. The business's revenue was up 65.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that VSE Corporation will post 5.78 earnings per share for the current year.

VSE Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 15th. VSE's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.82%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VSEC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. 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 research note on Friday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley set a $230.00 price target on VSE in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on VSE from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of VSE from $245.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of VSE from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $252.22.

VSE Company Profile

VSE Corporation NASDAQ: VSEC is a provider of aftermarket distribution and supply chain management services serving both government and commercial markets. The company's solutions span a wide range of industries, with particular emphasis on defense, aerospace and transportation. VSE's core mission is to ensure mission readiness by delivering critical parts, maintenance and technical support for equipment throughout its lifecycle.

Through its Distribution Services segment, VSE sources, markets and distributes replacement parts and components for commercial truck, bus, rail and specialty vehicle applications.

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