Global Industrial (NYSE:GIC) Hits New 12-Month High - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Global Industrial (NYSE:GIC) shares reached a new 52-week high at $35.39, indicating strong market performance, with a closing value of $35.35.
• The company received an upgrade from "buy" to "strong-buy" by Wall Street Zen, reflecting positive analyst sentiment.
• Global Industrial announced a quarterly dividend of $0.26 per share, with a dividend yield of 3.0%, signaling a commitment to returning value to shareholders.

Shares of Global Industrial Company (NYSE:GIC - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $35.39 and last traded at $35.35, with a volume of 17921 shares. The stock had previously closed at $34.18.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Wall Street Zen upgraded Global Industrial from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd.

Global Industrial Stock Down 0.3%

The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $29.22 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $25.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.80.

Global Industrial (NYSE:GIC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.50 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $358.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $351.81 million. Global Industrial had a return on equity of 22.89% and a net margin of 5.00%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Global Industrial Company will post 1.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Global Industrial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 11th will be issued a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 11th. Global Industrial's payout ratio is 60.82%.

Institutional Trading of Global Industrial

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of GIC. J. Goldman & Co LP lifted its holdings in shares of Global Industrial by 559.7% in the fourth quarter. J. Goldman & Co LP now owns 494,650 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,262,000 after purchasing an additional 419,672 shares in the last quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Global Industrial by 82.0% in the first quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 401,534 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,994,000 after purchasing an additional 180,870 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Global Industrial in the fourth quarter valued at about $4,001,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Global Industrial in the first quarter valued at about $3,427,000. Finally, Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of Global Industrial in the first quarter valued at about $1,802,000. 31.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Global Industrial Company Profile

Global Industrial Company operates as an industrial distributor of various industrial and maintenance, repair, and operation (MRO) products in North America. It offers storage and shelving, safety and security, carts and trucks, HVAC and fans, furniture and decor, material handling, janitorial and facility maintenance, workbenches and shop desks, tools and instruments, plumbing and pumps, office and school supplies, packaging and shipping, lighting and electrical, foodservice and retail, medical and laboratory, motors and power transmission, building supplies, machining, fasteners and hardware, vehicle maintenance, and raw materials.