Granite Investment Partners LLC Takes $13.75 Million Position in Vestis Co. (NYSE:VSTS)

Granite Investment Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vestis Co. (NYSE:VSTS) in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund acquired 1,124,421 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,752,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System raised its stake in shares of Vestis by 1.5% during the second quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 66,100 shares of the company’s stock valued at $808,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. raised its stake in Vestis by 9.6% in the second quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 21,747 shares of the company’s stock worth $266,000 after buying an additional 1,900 shares in the last quarter. Wahed Invest LLC bought a new position in Vestis in the fourth quarter worth about $42,000. TFO Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Vestis in the fourth quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, Texas Permanent School Fund Corp raised its stake in Vestis by 1.9% in the first quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 115,037 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,217,000 after buying an additional 2,124 shares in the last quarter. 97.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Vestis Stock Performance

NYSE:VSTS opened at $15.60 on Friday. Vestis Co. has a 52 week low of $8.92 and a 52 week high of $22.37. The company has a current ratio of 2.37, a quick ratio of 2.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $13.44 and its 200-day moving average price is $14.45.

Vestis (NYSE:VSTS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $0.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.10 by $0.06. Vestis had a net margin of 4.13% and a return on equity of 18.00%. The company had revenue of $698.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $688.33 million. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Vestis Co. will post 0.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Vestis Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th will be issued a $0.035 dividend. This represents a $0.14 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 13th.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Vestis from $12.50 to $13.80 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Baird R W cut shares of Vestis from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Robert W. Baird cut shares of Vestis from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $13.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, William Blair started coverage on shares of Vestis in a report on Friday, May 31st. They issued a “market perform” rating on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vestis presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $16.69.

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.