Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund Raises Stock Holdings in Vestis Corporation $VSTS

Key Points

• Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its Vestis stake by 69.1% in the first quarter, adding 437,965 shares to own 1.07 million shares worth approximately $8.4 million. Institutional investors collectively hold 97.4% of the company.
• Vestis reported quarterly earnings of $0.16 per share, beating estimates of $0.09, while revenue reached $659.4 million, slightly above forecasts but down 0.9% year over year.
• Despite the stock trading near its 52-week high at $15.32, analysts remain cautious: Vestis has an average “Reduce” rating and a consensus price target of $9.50.

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund boosted its stake in shares of Vestis Corporation (NYSE:VSTS - Free Report) by 69.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,072,081 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 437,965 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund owned about 0.81% of Vestis worth $8,427,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Militia Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Vestis during the 1st quarter valued at $225,000. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its stake in shares of Vestis by 9.2% in the 1st quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 60,225 shares of the company's stock worth $473,000 after buying an additional 5,065 shares during the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vestis by 54.9% in the 1st quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 112,609 shares of the company's stock worth $885,000 after buying an additional 39,894 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of 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 last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp grew its holdings in shares of Vestis by 110.6% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 45,379 shares of the company's stock worth $357,000 after acquiring an additional 23,834 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.40% of the company's stock.

Vestis Trading Down 0.2%

NYSE:VSTS opened at $15.32 on Wednesday. Vestis Corporation has a one year low of $3.98 and a one year high of $16.90. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $13.80 and a 200-day moving average price of $10.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -109.42 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 2.13 and a quick ratio of 1.69.

Vestis (NYSE:VSTS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 12th. The company reported $0.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.09 by $0.07. Vestis had a positive return on equity of 5.27% and a negative net margin of 0.63%.The company had revenue of $659.44 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $655.32 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($0.05) earnings per share. Vestis's quarterly revenue was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Vestis Corporation will post 0.52 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on VSTS shares. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Vestis from $10.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Vestis from a "sell (d)" rating to a "sell (d-)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "sell" rating and set a $7.50 price target on shares of Vestis in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Vestis from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Finally, William Blair raised shares of Vestis from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vestis currently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $9.50.

Vestis Profile

Vestis Corporation provides uniform rentals and workplace supplies in the United States and Canada. Its products include uniform options, such as shirts, pants, outerwear, gowns, scrubs, high visibility garments, particulate-free garments, and flame-resistant garments, as well as shoes and accessories; and workplace supplies, including managed restroom supply services, first-aid supplies and safety products, floor mats, towels, and linens. The company serves manufacturing, hospitality, retail, food processing, food service, pharmaceuticals, healthcare, automotive, and cleanroom industries.

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