Wall Street Zen Downgrades WillScot (NASDAQ:WSC) to Sell

WillScot (NASDAQ:WSC) was downgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report released on Monday.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on WSC. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of WillScot from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. DA Davidson dropped their target price on shares of WillScot from $35.00 to $32.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of WillScot in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of WillScot from $22.00 to $18.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $23.00 price objective (up from $22.00) on shares of WillScot in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, WillScot presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $25.38.

WillScot Stock Up 5.3%

Shares of WSC opened at $23.73 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -79.10, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.12. WillScot has a 52 week low of $14.91 and a 52 week high of $35.01. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $20.89 and its 200-day moving average price is $21.32. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.15.

WillScot (NASDAQ:WSC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.33 by ($0.04). WillScot had a negative net margin of 2.32% and a positive return on equity of 20.42%. The company had revenue of $565.97 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $545.34 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.48 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that WillScot will post 1.77 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On WillScot

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WSC. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in WillScot by 24.6% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 33,684 shares of the company’s stock worth $936,000 after acquiring an additional 6,651 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its holdings in WillScot by 1.3% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 724,638 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,145,000 after acquiring an additional 8,963 shares during the period. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D increased its holdings in shares of WillScot by 8.8% in the 2nd quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 68,764 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,884,000 after purchasing an additional 5,552 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of WillScot by 217.0% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 482,141 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,211,000 after acquiring an additional 330,042 shares during the period. Finally, Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its holdings in WillScot by 3.2% during the second quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 27,912 shares of the company’s stock worth $765,000 after purchasing an additional 866 shares during the last quarter. 95.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About WillScot

WillScot (NASDAQ: WSC) is a leading North American provider of modular space and portable storage solutions. The company designs, manufactures, leases and sells temporary and permanent modular buildings to serve sectors such as education, healthcare, construction, industrial and government. Its modular space offerings range from single‐unit office trailers and classrooms to complex multi‐unit configurations tailored to diverse project requirements.

In addition to modular structures, WillScot offers a broad portfolio of portable storage containers and related services, including site logistics, customization, delivery and installation.