WillScot (NASDAQ:WSC) Sees Large Volume Increase – Here’s What Happened

WillScot Holdings Corporation (NASDAQ:WSC) shares saw unusually-high trading volume on Friday . 5,201,883 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 126% from the previous session’s volume of 2,304,726 shares.The stock last traded at $21.82 and had previously closed at $22.00.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WSC has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird set a $26.00 target price on shares of WillScot in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of WillScot from $23.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $29.00 price target on shares of WillScot in a report on Friday, May 8th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of WillScot from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised WillScot from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, WillScot presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $26.50.

WillScot Trading Down 0.3%

The stock has a 50-day moving average of $26.17 and a 200 day moving average of $23.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.80. The stock has a market cap of $3.98 billion, a PE ratio of -57.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.33.

WillScot (NASDAQ:WSC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by $0.03. WillScot had a negative net margin of 3.00% and a positive return on equity of 21.62%. The company had revenue of $612.15 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $585.43 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.27 EPS. WillScot’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that WillScot Holdings Corporation will post 1.12 earnings per share for the current year.

WillScot Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.07 per share. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 2nd. WillScot’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -73.68%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On WillScot

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in shares of WillScot by 24.6% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 33,684 shares of the company’s stock worth $936,000 after buying an additional 6,651 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position 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 valued at $20,145,000 after acquiring an additional 8,963 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning lifted its holdings in WillScot by 6.9% in the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 15,814 shares of the company’s stock valued at $433,000 after acquiring an additional 1,024 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in WillScot by 3.0% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 46,781 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,282,000 after purchasing an additional 1,374 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its position in WillScot by 48.8% in the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 11,676 shares of the company’s stock worth $320,000 after purchasing an additional 3,827 shares in 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.