WESCO International (NYSE:WCC) Stock Price Crosses Above 200 Day Moving Average – Here’s Why

Shares of WESCO International, Inc. (NYSE:WCC) passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $174.68 and traded as high as $179.74. WESCO International shares last traded at $178.90, with a volume of 511,188 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently commented on WCC. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on WESCO International from $186.00 to $199.00 and gave the company 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 research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on WESCO International from $215.00 to $223.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on WESCO International from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, KeyCorp lifted their price objective on shares of WESCO International from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $215.88.

WESCO International Price Performance

The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $194.80 and its 200-day moving average price is $174.68. The firm has a market cap of $8.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 2.01. The company has a current ratio of 2.21, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99.

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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.22 by $0.36. The company had revenue of $5.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.46 billion. WESCO International had a net margin of 3.19% and a return on equity of 13.19%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $4.49 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that WESCO International, Inc. will post 12.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WESCO International Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.4125 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $1.65 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.92%. WESCO International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.21%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Nelson John Squires III sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.00, for a total value of $1,900,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 54,621 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,377,990. This represents a 15.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO David S. Schulz sold 14,938 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.55, for a total transaction of $3,085,443.90. Following the sale, 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 27,767 shares of company stock worth $5,567,454 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 3.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in WESCO International in the third quarter worth about $28,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in WESCO International by 18.3% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 633 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $106,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. Highland Capital Management LLC bought a new position in WESCO International during the 3rd quarter worth $221,000. Innealta Capital LLC lifted its stake in WESCO International by 68.0% in the third quarter. Innealta Capital LLC now owns 1,606 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $270,000 after buying an additional 650 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Greenleaf Trust boosted its holdings in shares of WESCO International by 4.8% during the third quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 2,401 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $403,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares during the period. 93.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About WESCO International

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).