Essex Investment Management Co. LLC Sells 5,155 Shares of Transcat, Inc. (NASDAQ:TRNS)

Essex Investment Management Co. LLC lowered its holdings in Transcat, Inc. (NASDAQ:TRNS - Free Report) by 11.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 38,289 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after selling 5,155 shares during the period. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC owned about 0.42% of Transcat worth $4,049,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Champlain Investment Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Transcat by 22.1% during the 3rd quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 409,500 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $49,455,000 after buying an additional 74,169 shares during the last quarter. Millrace Asset Group Inc. bought a new stake in Transcat during the third quarter worth about $655,000. State Street Corp boosted its position in Transcat by 8.1% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 207,230 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $25,027,000 after purchasing an additional 15,514 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Transcat by 5.4% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 217,473 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $26,269,000 after purchasing an additional 11,106 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in Transcat by 64.0% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 22,661 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $2,737,000 after purchasing an additional 8,844 shares in the last quarter. 98.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. StockNews.com downgraded Transcat from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. HC Wainwright cut their price target on shares of Transcat from $126.00 to $106.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Craig Hallum boosted their price objective on shares of Transcat from $113.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Oppenheimer downgraded shares of Transcat from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Northland Securities reissued a "market perform" rating and set a $85.00 price target (down previously from $110.00) on shares of Transcat in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $111.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Craig D. Cairns acquired 1,200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were purchased at an average price of $77.02 per share, for a total transaction of $92,424.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,910 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $147,108.20. This represents a 169.01 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 2.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Transcat Stock Performance

Shares of TRNS traded down $0.40 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $71.08. The company had a trading volume of 54,835 shares, compared to its average volume of 66,262. The business has a fifty day moving average of $87.74 and a 200-day moving average of $105.14. The company has a quick ratio of 1.98, a current ratio of 2.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The firm has a market cap of $661.68 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.42 and a beta of 0.66. Transcat, Inc. has a 12 month low of $70.47 and a 12 month high of $147.12.

Transcat (NASDAQ:TRNS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.07. Transcat had a net margin of 6.22% and a return on equity of 7.23%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.56 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Transcat, Inc. will post 2.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Transcat

Transcat, Inc provides calibration and laboratory instrument services in the United States, Canada, and internationally. It operates through two segments: Service and Distribution. The Service segment offers calibration, repair, inspection, analytical qualification, preventative maintenance, consulting, and other related services.