Yousif Capital Management LLC Decreases Stake in Encore Wire Co. (NASDAQ:WIRE)

Yousif Capital Management LLC reduced its position in Encore Wire Co. (NASDAQ:WIRE) by 8.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,347 shares of the electronics maker’s stock after selling 753 shares during the period. Yousif Capital Management LLC owned 0.05% of Encore Wire worth $1,783,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Encore Wire by 69.2% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 203 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Encore Wire during the third quarter valued at approximately $91,000. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in Encore Wire during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $99,000. Strs Ohio raised its position in Encore Wire by 40.0% during the fourth quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 700 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $149,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, Childress Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Encore Wire during the third quarter valued at approximately $205,000. 99.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on WIRE shares. DA Davidson downgraded Encore Wire from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $295.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. CJS Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Encore Wire in a research report on Friday, April 19th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Encore Wire in a report on Thursday, April 25th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Sidoti reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $290.00 price target on shares of Encore Wire in a report on Tuesday, April 16th.

Encore Wire Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ:WIRE opened at $281.00 on Thursday. Encore Wire Co. has a 52-week low of $150.51 and a 52-week high of $295.90. The stock has a market cap of $4.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.91 and a beta of 1.28. The business’s 50 day moving average is $253.09 and its 200 day moving average is $221.54.

Encore Wire (NASDAQ:WIRE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The electronics maker reported $3.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $632.66 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $579.64 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $6.50 earnings per share. Encore Wire’s revenue was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Encore Wire Co. will post 21.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Encore Wire Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 5th were paid a $0.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 4th. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.03%. Encore Wire’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 0.42%.

About Encore Wire

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.