StockNews.com Upgrades Virco Mfg. (NASDAQ:VIRC) to “Buy”

Virco Mfg. (NASDAQ:VIRC) was upgraded by StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday.

Separately, Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $17.00 price objective (down from $20.00) on shares of Virco Mfg. in a report on Tuesday, December 10th.

Virco Mfg. Stock Performance

Shares of VIRC stock traded up $0.02 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $10.18. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 101,492 shares, compared to its average volume of 191,347. The company has a 50 day moving average of $10.60 and a 200 day moving average of $12.93. The stock has a market cap of $165.82 million, a PE ratio of 6.57 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a current ratio of 2.88, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. Virco Mfg. has a 12-month low of $9.08 and a 12-month high of $18.50.

Virco Mfg. (NASDAQ:VIRC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, December 9th. The company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.87 by ($0.35). Virco Mfg. had a net margin of 8.93% and a return on equity of 24.63%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.62 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Virco Mfg. will post 1.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Virco Mfg. announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, January 21st that permits the company to buyback $10.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Virco Mfg.

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Virco Mfg. by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 93,719 shares of the company’s stock worth $961,000 after buying an additional 870 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Virco Mfg. by 11.4% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 15,656 shares of the company’s stock worth $160,000 after buying an additional 1,604 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its holdings in Virco Mfg. by 11.8% during the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 16,653 shares of the company’s stock worth $171,000 after buying an additional 1,753 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in Virco Mfg. by 15.1% during the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 16,633 shares of the company’s stock worth $170,000 after buying an additional 2,188 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Virco Mfg. by 7.2% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 35,178 shares of the company’s stock worth $361,000 after buying an additional 2,360 shares in the last quarter. 30.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Virco Mfg.

Virco Mfg. Corporation engages in the design, production, and distribution of furniture in the United States and Canada. The company offers seating products, including 4-leg chairs, cantilever chairs, mobile task chairs and lab stools, tablet armchairs, steel-frame and floor rockers, series stools, hard plastic seating, folding and upholstered stack chairs, and plastic stack and upholstered ergonomic chairs.