WESCO International, Inc. (NYSE:WCC) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of WESCO International, Inc. (NYSE:WCC) have earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the nine brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, six have given a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $266.00.

Several research analysts have recently commented on WCC shares. Royal Bank Of Canada upgraded WESCO International from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $262.00 to $302.00 in a report on Wednesday, November 19th. KeyCorp boosted their target price on shares of WESCO International from $300.00 to $304.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of WESCO International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, January 17th. Barclays increased their price objective on WESCO International from $274.00 to $302.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of WESCO International in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st.

WESCO International Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE WCC opened at $292.14 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $14.21 billion, a PE ratio of 22.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a current ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. WESCO International has a 12-month low of $125.21 and a 12-month high of $294.69. The company has a 50-day moving average of $266.94 and a 200 day moving average of $237.00.

WESCO International (NYSE:WCC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The technology company reported $3.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.75 by $0.17. WESCO International had a return on equity of 13.12% and a net margin of 2.81%.The business had revenue of $6.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.91 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.58 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 12.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that WESCO International will post 13.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

WESCO International Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th were given a $0.4538 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 12th. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. WESCO International’s dividend payout ratio is presently 14.27%.

Insider Buying and Selling at WESCO International

In other news, EVP Christine Ann Wolf sold 4,685 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $259.52, for a total value of $1,215,851.20. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 30,195 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,836,206.40. The trade was a 13.43% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Matthew S. Kulasa sold 790 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.18, for a total transaction of $200,012.20. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 3,320 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $840,557.60. The trade was a 19.22% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 17,036 shares of company stock worth $4,385,254 over the last three months. Insiders own 3.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On WESCO International

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of WESCO International during the second quarter worth about $75,136,000. River Road Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in WESCO International by 56.0% during the 2nd quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 605,918 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $112,216,000 after buying an additional 217,417 shares in the last quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC boosted its position in WESCO International by 19.5% in the 3rd quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 686,630 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $145,222,000 after buying an additional 111,930 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in shares of WESCO International by 4.9% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 795,629 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $147,351,000 after acquiring an additional 36,843 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in shares of WESCO International by 516.8% during the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 41,354 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $7,659,000 after acquiring an additional 34,649 shares during the period. 93.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

WESCO International Company Profile

WESCO International, Inc is a leading global distributor of electrical, industrial, communications and utility products, serving a diverse customer base across maintenance, repair and operations (MRO), original equipment manufacturing (OEM) and construction markets. The company offers a comprehensive portfolio of products ranging from power distribution and automation solutions to data communications, security systems and lighting controls. Through an extensive branch network, WESCO provides critical components and value‐added services that help organizations streamline operations and improve reliability in their facilities and infrastructure.

In addition to its broad product offering, WESCO delivers advanced supply chain management and logistics solutions designed to optimize inventory levels, reduce downtime and lower overall procurement costs.