25,400 Shares in Vestis Co. (NYSE:VSTS) Purchased by KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new stake in Vestis Co. (NYSE:VSTS) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund bought 25,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $388,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in Vestis by 13.8% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 228,436 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,481,000 after acquiring an additional 27,747 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in Vestis in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $93,000. Birnam Oak Advisors LP acquired a new stake in Vestis in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $21,446,000. Royce & Associates LP grew its stake in shares of Vestis by 39.2% during the fourth quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 959,830 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,628,000 after buying an additional 270,441 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Swiss National Bank increased its holdings in shares of Vestis by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 232,750 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,547,000 after buying an additional 1,700 shares in the last quarter. 97.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vestis Trading Down 12.3 %

Shares of VSTS stock opened at $7.93 on Friday. Vestis Co. has a 1-year low of $7.89 and a 1-year high of $19.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The stock has a market cap of $1.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 99.15 and a beta of 1.40. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $12.10 and a 200-day moving average of $14.19.

Vestis (NYSE:VSTS) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $0.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.12 by $0.02. Vestis had a net margin of 0.34% and a return on equity of 7.91%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.22 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Vestis Co. will post 0.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Vestis Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st were paid a dividend of $0.035 per share. This represents a $0.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. Vestis’s dividend payout ratio is presently 175.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on Vestis from $17.00 to $13.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on Vestis from $15.00 to $13.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on Vestis from $13.00 to $10.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $13.08.

Vestis Company 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.