Royce & Associates LP Has $14.63 Million Stock Holdings in Vestis Co. (NYSE:VSTS)

Royce & Associates LP grew its position in shares of Vestis Co. (NYSE:VSTS) by 39.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 959,830 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 270,441 shares during the quarter. Royce & Associates LP owned 0.73% of Vestis worth $14,628,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Pacer Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Vestis during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $210,766,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Vestis by 111.0% in the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 2,631,652 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,212,000 after buying an additional 1,384,413 shares during the last quarter. Forest Avenue Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Vestis in the third quarter valued at $19,486,000. TOMS Capital Investment Management LP increased its holdings in Vestis by 22.7% during the third quarter. TOMS Capital Investment Management LP now owns 2,330,155 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,719,000 after buying an additional 430,555 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Vestis by 17.7% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,538,882 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,693,000 after acquiring an additional 382,071 shares in the last quarter. 97.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on Vestis from $15.00 to $13.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Vestis from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on shares of Vestis from $10.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Vestis has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $13.68.

Vestis Price Performance

VSTS stock opened at $11.02 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a current ratio of 1.80. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $13.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $14.64. The company has a market capitalization of $1.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 137.70 and a beta of 1.40. Vestis Co. has a 52-week low of $8.92 and a 52-week high of $19.76.

Vestis (NYSE:VSTS) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.12 by $0.02. Vestis had a net margin of 0.34% and a return on equity of 7.91%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.22 EPS. Research analysts expect that Vestis Co. will post 0.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vestis Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a dividend of $0.035 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. This represents a $0.14 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.27%. Vestis’s payout ratio is currently 175.00%.

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.