ASGN (NYSE:ASGN) Upgraded at BMO Capital Markets

ASGN (NYSE:ASGN) was upgraded by BMO Capital Markets from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report issued on Friday,Finviz reports. The firm currently has a $100.00 price target on the business services provider’s stock, up from their previous price target of $96.00. BMO Capital Markets’ price target suggests a potential upside of 18.16% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other brokerages also recently weighed in on ASGN. Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of ASGN in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of ASGN from $95.00 to $88.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $97.89.

ASGN Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ASGN opened at $84.63 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.25, a current ratio of 2.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.74 billion, a PE ratio of 21.43 and a beta of 1.40. ASGN has a twelve month low of $83.71 and a twelve month high of $106.42. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $93.72 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $93.39.

ASGN (NYSE:ASGN) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.08. ASGN had a net margin of 4.37% and a return on equity of 13.65%. The firm had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.68 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that ASGN will post 5.17 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at ASGN

In other news, Director Arshad Matin sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.51, for a total transaction of $185,020.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 11,645 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,077,278.95. The trade was a 14.66 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Theodore S. Hanson sold 1,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.64, for a total transaction of $119,568.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 288,855 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,781,512.20. The trade was a 0.41 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 14,763 shares of company stock worth $1,398,986 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ASGN

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ASGN. LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in ASGN in the 1st quarter worth about $154,000. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its stake in ASGN by 1,851.6% in the 2nd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 19,887 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,753,000 after purchasing an additional 18,868 shares in the last quarter. Argent Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in ASGN by 43.8% in the 2nd quarter. Argent Capital Management LLC now owns 9,417 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $830,000 after purchasing an additional 2,868 shares in the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its position in ASGN by 28.2% in the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 11,823 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,102,000 after buying an additional 2,600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Reinhart Partners LLC. raised its position in ASGN by 7.2% in the 3rd quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. now owns 588,999 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $54,912,000 after buying an additional 39,607 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.36% of the company’s stock.

About ASGN

ASGN Incorporated engages in the provision of information technology (IT) services and solutions in the technology, digital, and creative fields for commercial and government sectors in the United States, Canada, and Europe. It operates through two segments: Commercial and Federal Government. The Commercial Segment provides consulting, creative digital marketing, and permanent placement services primarily to enterprise clients.