Critical Analysis: Vestis (VSTS) and Its Competitors

Vestis (NYSE:VSTS) is one of 355 publicly-traded companies in the “Commercial Services & Supplies” industry, but how does it compare to its competitors? We will compare Vestis to similar businesses based on the strength of its institutional ownership, valuation, profitability, earnings, analyst recommendations, dividends and risk.

Profitability

This table compares Vestis and its competitors’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Vestis	-0.20%	7.27%	2.20%
Vestis Competitors	-60.93%	-129.15%	-1.45%

Institutional & Insider Ownership

97.4% of Vestis shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 39.6% of shares of all “Commercial Services & Supplies” companies are owned by institutional investors. 15.7% of Vestis shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 16.7% of shares of all “Commercial Services & Supplies” companies are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and target prices for Vestis and its competitors, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Vestis	4	3	1	0	1.62
Vestis Competitors	1835	6116	9002	656	2.48

Vestis presently has a consensus target price of $12.66, suggesting a potential downside of 4.98%. As a group, “Commercial Services & Supplies” companies have a potential upside of 10.78%. Given Vestis’ competitors stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Vestis has less favorable growth aspects than its competitors.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Vestis and its competitors revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Net Income	Price/Earnings Ratio
Vestis	$2.73 billion	-$40.22 million	-266.48
Vestis Competitors	$2.45 billion	$140.19 million	21.90

Vestis has higher revenue, but lower earnings than its competitors. Vestis is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than its competitors, indicating that it is currently more affordable than other companies in its industry.

Volatility & Risk

Vestis has a beta of 0.97, meaning that its share price is 3% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Vestis’ competitors have a beta of 2.45, meaning that their average share price is 145% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Vestis competitors beat Vestis on 8 of the 13 factors compared.

About Vestis

Vestis Corporation provides uniform rentals and workplace supplies in the United States and Canada. Its products include uniform options, such as shirts, pants, outerwear, gowns, scrubs, high visibility garments, particulate-free garments, and flame-resistant garments, as well as shoes and accessories; and workplace supplies, including managed restroom supply services, first-aid supplies and safety products, floor mats, towels, and linens. The company serves manufacturing, hospitality, retail, food processing, food service, pharmaceuticals, healthcare, automotive, and cleanroom industries. Vestis Corporation was founded in 1936 and is headquartered in Roswell, Georgia.