Core & Main (NYSE:CNM) Shares Gap Up on Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Core & Main, Inc. (NYSE:CNM)’s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $50.52, but opened at $53.05. Core & Main shares last traded at $52.2350, with a volume of 1,049,704 shares traded.

The company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $0.17. Core & Main had a return on equity of 25.44% and a net margin of 5.57%.The business had revenue of $2.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.06 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.69 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year.

Core & Main announced that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, December 9th that allows the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CNM has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Core & Main from $54.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. Zacks Research raised shares of Core & Main from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 10th. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Core & Main from $62.00 to $54.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 10th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Core & Main from $65.00 to $63.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 1st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on Core & Main from $67.00 to $62.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 10th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $60.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Core & Main

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CNM. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Core & Main in the 2nd quarter worth about $9,849,000. Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in shares of Core & Main by 6,188.2% during the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 9,055 shares of the company’s stock worth $546,000 after purchasing an additional 8,911 shares during the period. Vident Advisory LLC increased its position in Core & Main by 155.9% during the 1st quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 10,808 shares of the company’s stock worth $522,000 after purchasing an additional 6,584 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Core & Main by 17.4% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 187,788 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,333,000 after purchasing an additional 27,892 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. raised its holdings in Core & Main by 0.4% in the second quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 3,371,475 shares of the company’s stock valued at $203,467,000 after buying an additional 14,244 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.19% of the company’s stock.

Core & Main Trading Up 2.1%

The stock has a market capitalization of $10.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.04, a PEG ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 2.25 and a quick ratio of 1.30. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $50.33 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $56.39.

About Core & Main

Core & Main, Inc is a specialty distributor focused on water, wastewater, storm drainage and fire protection products, and related services. The company provides infrastructure solutions to municipalities, private water companies and professional contractors across municipal, non-residential, and residential end markets, nationwide.