Virco Mfg. (NASDAQ:VIRC) Raised to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Virco Mfg. (NASDAQ:VIRC - Free Report) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Monday morning.

Virco Mfg. Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ VIRC traded up $0.16 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $10.42. 77,665 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 187,999. Virco Mfg. has a 52-week low of $8.52 and a 52-week high of $18.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $169.73 million, a PE ratio of 6.72 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a current ratio of 2.88. The business's fifty day moving average price is $10.11 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $11.94.

Virco Mfg. (NASDAQ:VIRC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 14th. The company reported ($0.35) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.15) by ($0.20). The company had revenue of $28.47 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $43.00 million. Virco Mfg. had a net margin of 8.93% and a return on equity of 24.63%. Analysts forecast that Virco Mfg. will post 1.54 EPS for the current year.

Virco Mfg. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 26th were given a dividend of $0.025 per share. This represents a $0.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 26th. Virco Mfg.'s payout ratio is 7.46%.

Virco Mfg. declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, January 21st that allows the company to repurchase $10.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Virco Mfg.

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Minerva Advisors LLC boosted its position in Virco Mfg. by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. Minerva Advisors LLC now owns 1,162,589 shares of the company's stock worth $11,870,000 after purchasing an additional 60,900 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Virco Mfg. by 9.4% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 684,378 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,015,000 after buying an additional 58,753 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in shares of Virco Mfg. by 15.4% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 453,107 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,644,000 after purchasing an additional 60,403 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Virco Mfg. by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 366,968 shares of the company's stock worth $3,761,000 after purchasing an additional 25,032 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Virco Mfg. by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 240,844 shares of the company's stock worth $3,327,000 after acquiring an additional 6,710 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 30.97% of the company's stock.

About Virco Mfg.

Virco Mfg. Corporation engages in the design, production, and distribution of furniture in the United States and Canada. The company offers seating products, including 4-leg chairs, cantilever chairs, mobile task chairs and lab stools, tablet armchairs, steel-frame and floor rockers, series stools, hard plastic seating, folding and upholstered stack chairs, and plastic stack and upholstered ergonomic chairs.