Encore Wire (NASDAQ:WIRE) Now Covered by Analysts at StockNews.com

StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Encore Wire (NASDAQ:WIRE) in a research note published on Thursday morning. The firm issued a hold rating on the electronics maker’s stock.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. DA Davidson cut Encore Wire from a buy rating to a neutral rating and set a $295.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. CJS Securities reiterated a market perform rating on shares of Encore Wire in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Sidoti reiterated a neutral rating and set a $290.00 target price on shares of Encore Wire in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th.

Encore Wire Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:WIRE opened at $284.89 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $249.52 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $219.73. Encore Wire has a 1-year low of $146.36 and a 1-year high of $295.90. The stock has a market cap of $4.50 billion, a PE ratio of 15.11 and a beta of 1.31.

Encore Wire (NASDAQ:WIRE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The electronics maker reported $3.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.65 by $0.27. Encore Wire had a return on equity of 17.77% and a net margin of 12.45%. The business had revenue of $632.66 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $579.64 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $6.50 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Encore Wire will post 21.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Encore Wire Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 19th. Investors of record on Friday, April 5th were paid a $0.02 dividend. This represents a $0.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 4th. Encore Wire’s dividend payout ratio is currently 0.42%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Encore Wire

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WIRE. Seizert Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Encore Wire in the 3rd quarter valued at about $24,143,000. LSV Asset Management raised its stake in Encore Wire by 21.6% in the 3rd quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 574,828 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $104,883,000 after acquiring an additional 102,062 shares during the period. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. purchased a new position in Encore Wire during the 1st quarter valued at about $24,993,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Encore Wire during the 4th quarter valued at about $20,223,000. Finally, First Dallas Securities Inc. grew its holdings in Encore Wire by 226.5% during the 3rd quarter. First Dallas Securities Inc. now owns 97,505 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $17,791,000 after buying an additional 67,640 shares in the last quarter. 99.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Encore Wire Company Profile

Encore Wire Corporation engages in manufacture and sale of electrical building wires and cables in the United States. It offers NM-B cables, UF-B cables, THHN/THWN-2, XHHW-2, USE-2, RHH/RHW-2, and other types of wire products, including SEU, SER, photovoltaic, URD, tray cables, metal-clads, and armored cables.