Vanguard Group Inc. Buys 1,924,653 Shares of WillScot Holdings Corporation (NASDAQ:WSC)

Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in WillScot Holdings Corporation (NASDAQ:WSC) by 11.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 18,338,511 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,924,653 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 9.99% of WillScot worth $509,811,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of WSC. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its holdings in shares of WillScot by 28.0% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,358 shares of the company’s stock worth $66,000 after acquiring an additional 516 shares during the period. Xponance Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of WillScot by 4.2% during the 1st quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 14,101 shares of the company’s stock worth $392,000 after acquiring an additional 568 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of WillScot by 8.4% during the 1st quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 7,533 shares of the company’s stock worth $209,000 after acquiring an additional 583 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of WillScot by 273.2% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 933 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 683 shares during the period. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its holdings in shares of WillScot by 89.9% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,747 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 827 shares during the period. 95.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Dominick P. Zarcone acquired 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 17th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $26.19 per share, for a total transaction of $261,900.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 15,384 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $402,906.96. The trade was a 185.74% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Bradley Lee Soultz acquired 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was bought at an average price of $24.85 per share, with a total value of $49,700.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 418,376 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,396,643.60. This represents a 0.48% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders acquired a total of 15,000 shares of company stock valued at $387,650 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 3.10% of the company’s stock.

WillScot Trading Down 3.7%

Shares of WillScot stock opened at $24.65 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.55. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $28.01 and a 200 day simple moving average of $29.06. WillScot Holdings Corporation has a 12-month low of $21.91 and a 12-month high of $42.15.

WillScot (NASDAQ:WSC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.36 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $589.08 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $587.07 million. WillScot had a net margin of 4.66% and a return on equity of 24.83%. The company’s revenue was down 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.39 EPS. Research analysts expect that WillScot Holdings Corporation will post 1.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WillScot Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 17th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 3rd will be given a $0.07 dividend. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 3rd. WillScot’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.67%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on WSC shares. William Blair reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of WillScot in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of WillScot from $39.00 to $37.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, DA Davidson dropped their target price on shares of WillScot from $45.00 to $40.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, WillScot currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $36.00.

WillScot Profile

WillScot Holdings Corporation provides workspace and portable storage solutions in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. It operates in two segments, Modular Solutions and Storage Solutions. Its modular solutions include panelized and stackable offices, single-wide modular space units, section modulars and redi-plex, classrooms, ground level offices, blast-resistant modules, clearspan structures, and other modular space; and portable storage solutions, such as portable and cold storage containers, as well as trailers.