Vishay Precision Group (NYSE:VPG) Shares Gap Up – Here’s Why

Vishay Precision Group, Inc. (NYSE:VPG) shares gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $46.81, but opened at $49.82. Vishay Precision Group shares last traded at $49.02, with a volume of 225,208 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on VPG shares. Loop Capital set a $44.00 price target on Vishay Precision Group in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Vishay Precision Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 22nd. Zacks Research lowered shares of Vishay Precision Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 6th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Vishay Precision Group from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Finally, Lake Street Capital assumed coverage on shares of Vishay Precision Group in a report on Thursday, December 18th. They set a “buy” rating and a $44.00 target price for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Vishay Precision Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $38.83.

Vishay Precision Group Stock Up 1.4%

The company has a quick ratio of 2.71, a current ratio of 4.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $37.77 and its 200 day simple moving average is $33.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $630.53 million, a PE ratio of 79.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.83.

Vishay Precision Group (NYSE:VPG) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $79.73 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $76.63 million. Vishay Precision Group had a return on equity of 2.02% and a net margin of 2.65%. Analysts anticipate that Vishay Precision Group, Inc. will post 0.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vishay Precision Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Vishay Precision Group by 2,638.2% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 931 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 897 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its stake in Vishay Precision Group by 826.7% during the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,112 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 992 shares during the last quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division bought a new stake in Vishay Precision Group in the fourth quarter worth $75,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in shares of Vishay Precision Group by 85.7% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,332 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $75,000 after acquiring an additional 1,076 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Wyoming purchased a new stake in shares of Vishay Precision Group in the second quarter worth $80,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.61% of the company’s stock.

Vishay Precision Group Company Profile

Vishay Precision Group (NYSE: VPG) specializes in the design, manufacture and calibration of precision sensors, instrumentation and measurement systems used in a broad range of applications. Its product portfolio includes load cells, tension links, weighing modules, torque transducers, digital indicators and data acquisition systems. These solutions serve critical requirements for accuracy, reliability and repeatability in sectors such as industrial automation, test and measurement, medical devices, food and beverage processing, aerospace and defense.

The company traces its roots to the sensor and measurement division of Vishay Intertechnology, Inc, from which it was spun off as an independent public company in March 2016.