Pacer Advisors Inc. Has $14.65 Million Stock Holdings in Vestis Corporation (NYSE:VSTS)

Key Points

• Pacer Advisors Inc. significantly reduced its holdings in Vestis Corporation by 89.3% in Q1, selling over 12 million shares and now owning approximately 1.12% of the company.
• Vestis has seen mixed ratings from analysts, with Barclays lowering its price target from $10.00 to $5.00, while the average price target among analysts stands at $9.25.
• Insider transactions include significant purchases by COO William J. Seward, who acquired 10,000 shares at $6.23 each, raising his total holdings by 8.27%.

Pacer Advisors Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Vestis Corporation (NYSE:VSTS - Free Report) by 89.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,479,518 shares of the company's stock after selling 12,350,263 shares during the quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. owned approximately 1.12% of Vestis worth $14,647,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in VSTS. New York State Common Retirement Fund raised its stake in Vestis by 7.3% in the first quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 368,747 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,651,000 after buying an additional 25,044 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Vestis in the fourth quarter worth about $2,194,000. State of Wyoming raised its stake in shares of Vestis by 244.4% in the fourth quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 60,483 shares of the company's stock worth $922,000 after purchasing an additional 42,922 shares during the last quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd acquired a new stake in Vestis during the fourth quarter worth about $1,217,000. Finally, Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lifted its position in shares of Vestis by 4.6% in the first quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 62,177 shares of the company's stock valued at $616,000 after acquiring an additional 2,727 shares in the last quarter. 97.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Vestis

In other Vestis news, COO William J. Seward acquired 10,000 shares of Vestis stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 8th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $6.23 per share, for a total transaction of $62,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 130,862 shares in the company, valued at approximately $815,270.26. This represents a 8.27% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Keith A. Meister acquired 314,390 shares of Vestis stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $6.03 per share, with a total value of $1,895,771.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 18,803,899 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $113,387,510.97. This trade represents a 1.70% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders bought a total of 880,675 shares of company stock valued at $5,271,632 over the last three months. 13.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Vestis Stock Performance

Vestis stock traded down $0.03 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $6.32. 236,956 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,356,905. Vestis Corporation has a twelve month low of $5.20 and a twelve month high of $17.83. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $6.09 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $9.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 1.41 and a current ratio of 1.87. The firm has a market cap of $832.21 million, a PE ratio of -35.08 and a beta of 0.96.

Vestis (NYSE:VSTS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported ($0.05) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.15 by ($0.20). The business had revenue of $665.25 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $690.81 million. Vestis had a positive return on equity of 5.36% and a negative net margin of 0.89%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Vestis Corporation will post 0.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and issued a $6.00 price objective (up from $5.00) on shares of Vestis in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Barclays decreased their target price on Vestis from $10.00 to $5.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and three have assigned a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vestis has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $9.25.

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.