StockNews.com Upgrades WESCO International (NYSE:WCC) to “Buy”

WESCO International (NYSE:WCC) was upgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on WCC. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on WESCO International from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Baird R W upgraded shares of WESCO International from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Loop Capital lifted their price target on shares of WESCO International from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of WESCO International from $186.00 to $199.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on WESCO International from $215.00 to $223.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $215.88.

WESCO International Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WCC opened at $191.73 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 2.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 2.21 and a quick ratio of 1.29. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $194.08 and its 200-day simple moving average is $176.85. WESCO International has a 12 month low of $132.37 and a 12 month high of $216.17.

WESCO International (NYSE:WCC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The technology company reported $3.58 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.22 by $0.36. The company had revenue of $5.49 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.46 billion. WESCO International had a return on equity of 13.19% and a net margin of 3.19%. WESCO International’s quarterly revenue was down 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $4.49 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that WESCO International will post 12.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at WESCO International

In other WESCO International news, EVP Nelson John Squires III sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.00, for a total transaction of $1,900,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 54,621 shares in the company, valued at $10,377,990. The trade was a 15.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP William Clayton Geary sold 2,829 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.73, for a total value of $582,010.17. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 35,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,213,510.99. This trade represents a 7.47 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 27,767 shares of company stock worth $5,567,454. 3.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of WESCO International

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in WESCO International by 23,727.4% during the 2nd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,589,048 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $251,896,000 after purchasing an additional 1,582,379 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of WESCO International by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 762,653 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $128,143,000 after buying an additional 22,080 shares during the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of WESCO International during the second quarter worth approximately $52,782,000. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC increased its stake in shares of WESCO International by 341.8% in the third quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC now owns 258,486 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $43,420,000 after buying an additional 199,975 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. raised its holdings in WESCO International by 1.5% in the third quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 194,979 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $32,753,000 after acquiring an additional 2,923 shares in the last quarter. 93.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About WESCO International

WESCO International, Inc provides business-to-business distribution, logistics services, and supply chain solutions in the United States, Canada, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Electrical & Electronic Solutions (EES), Communications & Security Solutions (CSS), and Utility and Broadband Solutions (UBS).