Russell Investments Group Ltd. Decreases Stake in VSE Co. (NASDAQ:VSEC)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. trimmed its stake in shares of VSE Co. (NASDAQ:VSEC - Free Report) by 60.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 25,570 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 38,450 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned 0.13% of VSE worth $2,432,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of VSE by 20.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,071,545 shares of the construction company's stock worth $101,904,000 after buying an additional 182,465 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its stake in VSE by 12.7% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 928,617 shares of the construction company's stock worth $88,311,000 after purchasing an additional 104,868 shares in the last quarter. AltraVue Capital LLC boosted its holdings in VSE by 8.8% in the 4th quarter. AltraVue Capital LLC now owns 617,648 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $58,738,000 after purchasing an additional 50,000 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of VSE by 9.4% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 418,638 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $39,821,000 after purchasing an additional 35,919 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of VSE by 7.6% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 349,957 shares of the construction company's stock worth $33,281,000 after purchasing an additional 24,836 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.54% of the company's stock.

VSE Price Performance

VSEC stock traded up $1.60 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $109.69. 15,601 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 252,498. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 3.69 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 132.16 and a beta of 1.32. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $112.66 and a 200 day moving average price of $107.27. VSE Co. has a 12 month low of $73.36 and a 12 month high of $128.72.

VSE (NASDAQ:VSEC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The construction company reported $0.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $299.02 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $289.97 million. VSE had a return on equity of 7.26% and a net margin of 1.36%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that VSE Co. will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

VSE Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 1st will be paid a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.36%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 1st. VSE's dividend payout ratio is presently 48.19%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on VSEC shares. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on VSE from $134.00 to $130.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. StockNews.com raised VSE to a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $118.00.

VSE Profile

VSE Corporation operates as a diversified aftermarket products and services company in the United States. The company operates through two segments, Aviation and Fleet. The Aviation segment provides aftermarket parts supply and distribution; maintenance, repair, and overhaul services for components and engine accessories supporting commercial, business, and general aviation operators.