VSE (NASDAQ:VSEC) Sets New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

VSE Corporation (NASDAQ:VSEC) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $240.56 and last traded at $238.01, with a volume of 412312 shares. The stock had previously closed at $232.33.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on VSEC shares. Morgan Stanley started coverage on VSE in a research report on Friday, June 26th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $245.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings lowered VSE from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of VSE from $220.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $268.00 target price on shares of VSE in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Truist Financial upgraded shares of VSE to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $239.78.

VSE Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 8.78 and a quick ratio of 6.24. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $192.08 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $197.31. The firm has a market cap of $6.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 100.43, a PEG ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.21.

VSE (NASDAQ:VSEC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The construction company reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.24. The business had revenue of $324.58 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $309.19 million. VSE had a net margin of 4.95% and a return on equity of 6.56%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 26.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.78 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that VSE Corporation will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

VSE Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 15th will be paid a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 15th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. VSE’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.88%.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Benjamin E. Thomas sold 6,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $196.82, for a total value of $1,279,330.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 42,839 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,431,571.98. This represents a 13.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of VSE

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VSEC. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in VSE by 145.7% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 258 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. Ellevest Inc. acquired a new position in VSE in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $323,000. AQR Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of VSE in the 1st quarter valued at $247,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in VSE by 17.1% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,207 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $381,000 after buying an additional 323 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its position in shares of VSE by 47.4% during the 4th quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 5,600 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $968,000 after purchasing an additional 1,800 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.54% of the company’s stock.

About VSE

VSE Corporation (NASDAQ: VSEC) is a provider of aftermarket distribution and supply chain management services serving both government and commercial markets. The company’s solutions span a wide range of industries, with particular emphasis on defense, aerospace and transportation. VSE’s core mission is to ensure mission readiness by delivering critical parts, maintenance and technical support for equipment throughout its lifecycle.

Through its Distribution Services segment, VSE sources, markets and distributes replacement parts and components for commercial truck, bus, rail and specialty vehicle applications.