World Kinect (NYSE:WKC) Sees Large Volume Increase Following Analyst Upgrade

Shares of World Kinect Co. (NYSE:WKC) saw unusually-high trading volume on Friday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on the stock from $29.00 to $32.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Approximately 1,340,409 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 135% from the previous session’s volume of 571,380 shares.The stock last traded at $31.30 and had previously closed at $30.85.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on World Kinect from $35.00 to $33.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of World Kinect from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $28.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Monday. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of World Kinect from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, World Kinect currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $30.40.

Insider Buying and Selling at World Kinect

In related news, CEO Michael J. Kasbar sold 58,948 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.92, for a total value of $1,645,828.16. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,019,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $28,452,238.96. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other World Kinect news, Director John L. Manley sold 16,000 shares of World Kinect stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.28, for a total transaction of $452,480.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 49,614 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,403,083.92. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael J. Kasbar sold 58,948 shares of World Kinect stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.92, for a total transaction of $1,645,828.16. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,019,063 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,452,238.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On World Kinect

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in WKC. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of World Kinect by 2.1% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,056,230 shares of the company’s stock valued at $186,637,000 after buying an additional 146,899 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in World Kinect by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,126,784 shares of the company’s stock valued at $106,471,000 after acquiring an additional 140,314 shares during the last quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP lifted its stake in World Kinect by 10.6% in the 2nd quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 2,972,932 shares of the company’s stock worth $76,714,000 after purchasing an additional 284,560 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of World Kinect by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,631,393 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,150,000 after purchasing an additional 52,930 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners boosted its holdings in shares of World Kinect by 12.4% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,358,173 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,263,000 after purchasing an additional 149,433 shares during the last quarter. 97.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

World Kinect Trading Up 1.1 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $27.62 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $26.10. The stock has a market cap of $1.87 billion, a PE ratio of 33.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.24.

World Kinect (NYSE:WKC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $0.48 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by ($0.08). World Kinect had a net margin of 0.29% and a return on equity of 6.26%. The firm had revenue of $10.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.98 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.48 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that World Kinect Co. will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

World Kinect Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 16th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th will be given a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 30th. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.18%. World Kinect’s dividend payout ratio is currently 73.12%.

About World Kinect

World Kinect Corporation operates as an energy management company in the United States, the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. This segment also offers fuel management, price risk management, ground handling, dispatch services, and trip planning services, such as flight planning and scheduling, weather reports and overflight permits; payment and processing services; and operates a web-based marketplace platform.