Fifth Third Bancorp Acquires 47,134 Shares of Transcat, Inc. $TRNS

Key Points

• Fifth Third Bancorp dramatically increased its Transcat stake by 6,267.8% in the first quarter, buying 47,134 additional shares and bringing its total position to 47,886 shares worth about $3.5 million.
• Transcat has seen continued institutional investor activity, with several funds adding to holdings and institutional ownership now standing at 98.34% of the stock.
• Analyst sentiment has improved modestly, with recent rating upgrades leaving Transcat at a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $105.50; the company also beat quarterly EPS estimates in its latest earnings report.

Fifth Third Bancorp grew its stake in shares of Transcat, Inc. (NASDAQ:TRNS - Free Report) by 6,267.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 47,886 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after purchasing an additional 47,134 shares during the quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp owned approximately 0.51% of Transcat worth $3,517,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Howe & Rusling Inc. lifted its holdings in Transcat by 10.9% during the 1st quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. now owns 9,214 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $677,000 after buying an additional 904 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co raised its stake in shares of Transcat by 8.8% during the first quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 5,495 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $404,000 after acquiring an additional 444 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Transcat by 22.6% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 14,741 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $836,000 after acquiring an additional 2,722 shares in the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Transcat in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $380,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Transcat by 677.7% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 248,539 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $14,100,000 after purchasing an additional 216,579 shares during the period. 98.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on TRNS. Weiss Ratings raised Transcat from a "sell (d)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Wall Street Zen raised Transcat from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, June 28th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Transcat from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Transcat presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $105.50.

Transcat Stock Performance

NASDAQ:TRNS opened at $87.90 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $85.88 and a 200-day simple moving average of $76.94. Transcat, Inc. has a one year low of $50.23 and a one year high of $95.22. The firm has a market cap of $820.99 million, a P/E ratio of 151.55 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 1.99 and a current ratio of 2.33.

Transcat (NASDAQ:TRNS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 26th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $89.33 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $89.79 million. Transcat had a net margin of 1.62% and a return on equity of 5.84%. Equities analysts anticipate that Transcat, Inc. will post 1.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Transcat

Transcat, Inc NASDAQ: TRNS is a leading provider of calibration, laboratory, and metrology services in North America. Founded in 1964 and headquartered in Ronkonkoma, New York, the company specializes in ensuring the accuracy and compliance of measurement instruments across a wide range of industries. Transcat operates a network of ISO/IEC 17025–accredited laboratories and offers on-site field calibration, instrument repair, and preventive maintenance services.

In addition to its calibration services, Transcat distributes precision instrumentation and related software solutions from top manufacturers.

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