WESCO International (NYSE:WCC) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Baird R W

WESCO International (NYSE:WCC) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Baird R W from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued on Wednesday, Zacks.com reports.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on WCC. StockNews.com cut WESCO International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $190.00 price target on shares of WESCO International in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Robert W. Baird raised shares of WESCO International from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $522.00 to $550.00 in a research report on Wednesday. KeyCorp cut their price objective on shares of WESCO International from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on WESCO International from $171.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $243.86.

WESCO International Stock Up 4.1 %

Shares of NYSE WCC opened at $179.54 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $162.95 and a 200 day moving average price of $166.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 2.28. The stock has a market cap of $8.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 2.03. WESCO International has a 52-week low of $122.30 and a 52-week high of $195.43.

WESCO International (NYSE:WCC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The technology company reported $3.21 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.48 by ($0.27). The firm had revenue of $5.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.55 billion. WESCO International had a net margin of 3.30% and a return on equity of 14.44%. WESCO International’s quarterly revenue was down 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.71 EPS. Analysts expect that WESCO International will post 12.14 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Steven A. Raymund sold 5,819 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.56, for a total value of $998,307.64. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 27,004 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,632,806.24. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 3.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of WESCO International

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WCC. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of WESCO International by 23,727.4% in the 2nd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,589,048 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $251,896,000 after purchasing an additional 1,582,379 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of WESCO International in the second quarter valued at approximately $52,782,000. Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new position in shares of WESCO International during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $5,916,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of WESCO International by 74.8% during the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 72,897 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $12,486,000 after acquiring an additional 31,200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hosking Partners LLP lifted its holdings in WESCO International by 68.6% during the 1st quarter. Hosking Partners LLP now owns 63,577 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $10,889,000 after purchasing an additional 25,864 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.76% of the company’s stock.

WESCO International Company Profile

WESCO International, Inc provides business-to-business distribution, logistics services, and supply chain solutions in the United States, Canada, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Electrical & Electronic Solutions (EES), Communications & Security Solutions (CSS), and Utility and Broadband Solutions (UBS).