Axon Capital LP Makes New $2.43 Million Investment in Vestis Corporation $VSTS

Key Points

• Axon Capital LP acquired 182,000 Vestis shares worth approximately $2.43 million, making Vestis 4.5% of its portfolio and its eighth-largest holding. Institutional investors collectively own 97.4% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a cautious outlook: Vestis has a consensus “Reduce” rating, with one Buy, three Hold, and four Sell ratings, despite price targets ranging from $9.30 to $16.00.
• Vestis exceeded quarterly EPS expectations, reporting $0.18 versus the $0.10 consensus estimate, although revenue of $661.66 million fell short of estimates and the company posted a slightly negative net margin.

Axon Capital LP bought a new stake in Vestis Corporation (NYSE:VSTS - Free Report) during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm bought 182,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,432,000. Vestis comprises 4.5% of Axon Capital LP's holdings, making the stock its 8th biggest holding. Axon Capital LP owned approximately 0.14% of Vestis at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Vestis during the 2nd quarter worth about $9,368,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund grew its holdings in Vestis by 69.1% in the 1st quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,072,081 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,427,000 after buying an additional 437,965 shares during the last quarter. RBF Capital LLC grew its holdings in Vestis by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. RBF Capital LLC now owns 878,251 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,903,000 after buying an additional 17,009 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Vestis by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 544,214 shares of the company's stock worth $4,278,000 after buying an additional 9,901 shares during the period. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in Vestis by 8.5% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 502,782 shares of the company's stock worth $3,952,000 after buying an additional 39,433 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.40% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Vestis from $8.20 to $9.30 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Vestis in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Vestis from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Vestis from $11.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Vestis from $11.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $12.66.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO James Barber purchased 84,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 2nd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $12.37 per share, with a total value of $1,045,265.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 867,222 shares in the company, valued at $10,727,536.14. This represents a 10.80% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 15.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Vestis Price Performance

Shares of Vestis stock opened at $15.23 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a current ratio of 2.17. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $13.65 and its 200-day simple moving average is $11.33. Vestis Corporation has a twelve month low of $4.83 and a twelve month high of $16.90. The firm has a market cap of $2.01 billion, a P/E ratio of -304.64 and a beta of 0.90.

Vestis (NYSE:VSTS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 11th. The company reported $0.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.10 by $0.08. Vestis had a negative net margin of 0.20% and a positive return on equity of 7.27%. The firm had revenue of $661.66 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $668.94 million. As a group, research analysts expect that Vestis Corporation will post 0.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vestis Profile

Vestis Corporation NYSE: VSTS provides workplace apparel and facility services to businesses and organizations across the United States and Canada. Its offerings are designed to help customers manage employee uniforms and maintain clean, safe, and professional work environments.

The company supplies and services uniforms, workwear, and protective apparel, along with related products such as linens, towels, floor mats, restroom supplies, first-aid products, and other workplace essentials.

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