WESCO International, Inc. (NYSE:WCC) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of WESCO International, Inc. (NYSE:WCC) have received an average recommendation of “Buy” from the nine brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $215.88.

Several analysts have issued reports on WCC shares. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of WESCO International from $186.00 to $199.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Baird R W upgraded shares of WESCO International from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on WESCO International from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. StockNews.com raised shares of WESCO International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Stephens raised their target price on shares of WESCO International from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other WESCO International news, CFO David S. Schulz sold 14,938 shares of WESCO International stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.55, for a total transaction of $3,085,443.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 104,471 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,578,485.05. The trade was a 12.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP William Clayton Geary sold 2,829 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $205.73, for a total transaction of $582,010.17. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 35,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,213,510.99. This trade represents a 7.47 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 27,767 shares of company stock worth $5,567,454. Corporate insiders own 3.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On WESCO International

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WCC. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted 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 worth $251,896,000 after buying an additional 1,582,379 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in WESCO International by 3.0% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 762,653 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $128,143,000 after acquiring an additional 22,080 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC bought a new position in WESCO International during the 2nd quarter worth about $52,782,000. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC raised its holdings in shares of WESCO International by 341.8% in the 3rd quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC now owns 258,486 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $43,420,000 after purchasing an additional 199,975 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. lifted its position in shares of WESCO International by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 194,979 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $32,753,000 after purchasing an additional 2,923 shares during the period. 93.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

WESCO International Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WCC opened at $191.73 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $194.08 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $176.98. WESCO International has a twelve month low of $132.37 and a twelve month high of $216.17. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 2.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.39 billion, a PE ratio of 15.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 2.02.

WESCO International (NYSE:WCC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The technology company reported $3.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.22 by $0.36. The business had revenue of $5.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.46 billion. WESCO International had a net margin of 3.19% and a return on equity of 13.19%. WESCO International’s revenue was down 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $4.49 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that WESCO International will post 12.3 EPS for the current year.

WESCO International Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th were issued a dividend of $0.4125 per share. This represents a $1.65 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.86%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. WESCO International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 13.21%.

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).