Capital International Investors Cuts Position in Vestis Co. (NYSE:VSTS)

Capital International Investors reduced its stake in Vestis Co. (NYSE:VSTS) by 77.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,359,661 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,581,044 shares during the period. Capital International Investors owned 1.03% of Vestis worth $26,201,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Carlson Capital L P grew its position in Vestis by 216.0% during the first quarter. Carlson Capital L P now owns 438,759 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,455,000 after buying an additional 299,894 shares during the period. Natixis raised its stake in shares of Vestis by 53.2% in the 1st quarter. Natixis now owns 190,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,661,000 after acquiring an additional 66,000 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund purchased a new position in shares of Vestis in the 1st quarter valued at $3,854,000. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd acquired a new stake in Vestis during the 1st quarter valued at $517,000. Finally, Lord Abbett & CO. LLC acquired a new stake in Vestis during the 1st quarter valued at $7,364,000. 97.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on VSTS. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Vestis from $19.00 to $10.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on shares of Vestis from $20.00 to $11.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 6th. Redburn Atlantic lowered shares of Vestis from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $13.40 price target on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of Vestis from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $22.00 to $11.00 in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Vestis in a report on Friday, May 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Vestis currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $16.38.

Vestis Price Performance

Shares of VSTS traded down $0.06 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $12.46. The stock had a trading volume of 1,761,776 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,249,344. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $12.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $16.25. Vestis Co. has a 12 month low of $8.92 and a 12 month high of $22.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 2.16.

Vestis (NYSE:VSTS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The company reported $0.13 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.22 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $705.37 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $722.54 million. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Vestis Co. will post 0.59 EPS for the current year.

Vestis Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th were given a dividend of $0.035 per share. This represents a $0.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.12%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 14th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vestis news, major shareholder Corvex Management Lp acquired 1,828,009 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of $9.54 per share, for a total transaction of $17,439,205.86. Following the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 14,973,187 shares in the company, valued at $142,844,203.98. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CFO Ricky T. Dillon bought 16,200 shares of Vestis stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 14th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $12.43 per share, with a total value of $201,366.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief financial officer now directly owns 58,837 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $731,343.91. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Corvex Management Lp acquired 1,828,009 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 6th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $9.54 per share, with a total value of $17,439,205.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 14,973,187 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $142,844,203.98. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders purchased a total of 2,830,779 shares of company stock worth $28,501,849 over the last quarter.

Vestis 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.