ASGN (NYSE:ASGN) Cut to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of ASGN (NYSE:ASGN) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Tuesday.

ASGN has been the subject of a number of other research reports. BMO Capital Markets raised ASGN from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $96.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of ASGN in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of ASGN from $95.00 to $88.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $101.75.

ASGN Price Performance

ASGN stock opened at $86.82 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.25, a quick ratio of 2.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $88.86 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $91.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.98 and a beta of 1.38. ASGN has a 12-month low of $82.04 and a 12-month high of $106.42.

ASGN (NYSE:ASGN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.08. ASGN had a return on equity of 13.65% and a net margin of 4.37%. The company had revenue of $1.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.68 EPS. ASGN’s revenue was down 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that ASGN will post 5.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, President Randolph C. Blazer sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.03, for a total value of $950,300.00. Following the sale, the president now owns 85,923 shares in the company, valued at $8,165,262.69. This represents a 10.43 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Theodore S. Hanson sold 1,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.64, for a total value of $119,568.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 288,855 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $28,781,512.20. This trade represents a 0.41 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 12,260 shares of company stock worth $1,168,469. 3.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ASGN

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cim Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in ASGN in the third quarter worth about $205,000. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. increased its position in shares of ASGN by 17.3% during the third quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 5,414 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $505,000 after acquiring an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Argent Capital Management LLC lifted its position in ASGN by 12.1% in the 3rd quarter. Argent Capital Management LLC now owns 10,559 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $984,000 after acquiring an additional 1,142 shares in the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its stake in ASGN by 28.2% during the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 11,823 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,102,000 after purchasing an additional 2,600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Reinhart Partners LLC. increased its holdings in shares of ASGN by 7.2% in the 3rd quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. now owns 588,999 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $54,912,000 after purchasing an additional 39,607 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.36% of the company’s stock.

ASGN Company Profile

ASGN Incorporated engages in the provision of information technology (IT) services and solutions in the technology, digital, and creative fields for commercial and government sectors in the United States, Canada, and Europe. It operates through two segments: Commercial and Federal Government. The Commercial Segment provides consulting, creative digital marketing, and permanent placement services primarily to enterprise clients.