Vector Group (NYSE:VGR) Earns Strong-Buy Rating from Analysts at StockNews.com

Analysts at StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Vector Group (NYSE:VGR) in a research report issued on Sunday. The brokerage set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock.

Separately, Barclays upped their price target on Vector Group from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th.

Vector Group Stock Performance

Vector Group stock opened at $14.99 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $14.97 and a 200 day simple moving average of $12.67. Vector Group has a 1-year low of $9.27 and a 1-year high of $15.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.92 and a beta of 1.04.

Vector Group (NYSE:VGR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.30 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $371.91 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $362.90 million. Vector Group had a negative return on equity of 26.96% and a net margin of 14.05%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Vector Group will post 1.22 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Vector Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of VGR. Algert Global LLC lifted its holdings in Vector Group by 72.9% during the 2nd quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 691,014 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,304,000 after buying an additional 291,404 shares in the last quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC lifted its stake in shares of Vector Group by 78.6% in the 2nd quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC now owns 666,609 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,046,000 after purchasing an additional 293,338 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Vector Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $693,000. Duality Advisers LP purchased a new stake in Vector Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $900,000. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vector Group in the first quarter worth about $527,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.09% of the company’s stock.

Vector Group Company Profile

Vector Group Ltd., through its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of cigarettes in the United States. It operates in two segments, Tobacco and Real Estate. The company produces cigarettes under the Montego, EAGLE 20’s, Pyramid, Grand Prix, Liggett Select, Eve, and USA brand names, as well as various partner and private label brands.