Vestis (NYSE:VSTS) Downgraded by Robert W. Baird

Robert W. Baird cut shares of Vestis (NYSE:VSTS) from an outperform rating to a neutral rating in a report published on Thursday, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage currently has $13.00 target price on the stock.

VSTS has been the subject of several other research reports. Redburn Atlantic lowered shares of Vestis from a buy rating to a neutral rating and set a $13.40 price target for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, May 7th. Stifel Nicolaus restated a hold rating on shares of Vestis in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of Vestis from $20.00 to $11.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 6th. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Vestis from $19.00 to $10.00 and set an underweight rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of Vestis from an overweight rating to a neutral rating and decreased their target price for the company from $22.00 to $11.00 in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Vestis currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $16.54.

Vestis Stock Up 1.8 %

VSTS opened at $13.00 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. Vestis has a 12-month low of $8.92 and a 12-month high of $22.37. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $12.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $15.65.

Vestis (NYSE:VSTS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $0.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.10 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $698.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $688.33 million. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Vestis will post 0.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vestis Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th were given a $0.035 dividend. This represents a $0.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 14th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, major shareholder Corvex Management Lp acquired 116,044 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 20th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $12.59 per share, for a total transaction of $1,460,993.96. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 16,707,877 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $210,352,171.43. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, major shareholder Corvex Management Lp acquired 116,044 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 20th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $12.59 per share, for a total transaction of $1,460,993.96. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 16,707,877 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $210,352,171.43. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Ricky T. Dillon purchased 16,200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were bought at an average price of $12.43 per share, for a total transaction of $201,366.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer now owns 58,837 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $731,343.91. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have bought 309,954 shares of company stock worth $3,802,807.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vestis

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VSTS. Vanguard Group Inc. acquired a new position in Vestis during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $302,586,000. Capital International Investors acquired a new position in Vestis during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $125,586,000. Channing Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vestis in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $72,529,000. Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new stake in shares of Vestis in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $56,431,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Vestis in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $48,292,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.40% of the company’s stock.

About Vestis

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.