WESCO International, Inc. $WCC Stock Sold by AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc

Key Points

• AEGON Asset Management UK cut its WESCO stake by 11.2% in the third quarter, selling 7,097 shares and retaining 56,235 shares valued at about $20.2 million.
• WESCO reported quarterly EPS of $5.77, beating estimates of $4.69, while revenue rose 16.6% year over year to $7.23 billion.
• Analyst sentiment was broadly positive: eight analysts rated the stock Buy and one Hold, for a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $403.86.

AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc reduced its holdings in WESCO International, Inc. (NYSE:WCC - Free Report) by 11.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 56,235 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 7,097 shares during the quarter. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc owned 0.12% of WESCO International worth $20,222,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of WESCO International by 28.8% during the second quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 23,336 shares of the technology company's stock worth $8,061,000 after acquiring an additional 5,224 shares in the last quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP bought a new stake in WESCO International in the 2nd quarter valued at $8,338,000. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in WESCO International in the 2nd quarter valued at $3,094,634,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in WESCO International in the 2nd quarter worth $296,304,000. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC bought a new position in WESCO International during the 2nd quarter worth about $8,745,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.75% of the company's stock.

WESCO International Trading Up 8.1%

Shares of NYSE:WCC opened at $316.25 on Tuesday. The company's 50-day moving average price is $347.40 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $328.11. WESCO International, Inc. has a one year low of $240.55 and a one year high of $388.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 2.01 and a quick ratio of 1.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.41 billion, a PE ratio of 19.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.55.

WESCO International (NYSE:WCC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 29th. The technology company reported $5.77 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.69 by $1.08. WESCO International had a return on equity of 16.27% and a net margin of 3.04%. The company had revenue of $7.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.87 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.92 EPS. WESCO International's revenue for the quarter was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that WESCO International, Inc. will post 18.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

WESCO International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 11th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 11th. WESCO International's payout ratio is currently 12.41%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on WCC shares. Barclays lifted their price target on WESCO International from $390.00 to $437.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, October 12th. Zacks Research cut WESCO International from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, October 19th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on WESCO International from $435.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, October 30th. Weiss Ratings downgraded WESCO International from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Friday, October 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised WESCO International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, October 24th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $403.86.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other WESCO International news, EVP Akash Khurana sold 3,400 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $366.78, for a total value of $1,247,052.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 27,404 shares in the company, valued at $10,051,239.12. The trade was a 11.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Indraneel Dev acquired 1,725 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 5th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $291.90 per share, for a total transaction of $503,527.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 18,621 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,435,469.90. This trade represents a 10.21% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 2.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About WESCO International

WESCO International is a business-to-business distributor of electrical, communications, utility and industrial products. Its offerings include wire and cable, lighting, electrical equipment, networking and security systems, and supplies used in maintenance, repair and operations.

The company also provides services such as procurement, inventory management, logistics, project support and supply-chain consulting. Its customers include contractors, manufacturers, utilities, communications providers, government organizations and commercial businesses.

WESCO serves customers in the United States and internationally.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding WCC? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for WESCO International, Inc. (NYSE:WCC - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.