Short Interest in ASGN Incorporated (NYSE:ASGN) Increases By 9.6%

ASGN Incorporated (NYSE:ASGN) saw a significant growth in short interest in August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,490,000 shares, a growth of 9.6% from the August 15th total of 1,360,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 361,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.1 days. Currently, 3.4% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Arshad Matin sold 2,000 shares of ASGN stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.51, for a total transaction of $185,020.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,645 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,077,278.95. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Jonathan S. Holman sold 503 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.45, for a total value of $45,496.35. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 10,821 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $978,759.45. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Arshad Matin sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.51, for a total transaction of $185,020.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,645 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,077,278.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of ASGN

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in shares of ASGN by 1,851.6% during the second quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 19,887 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,753,000 after buying an additional 18,868 shares during the last quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. raised its holdings in ASGN by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. now owns 548,300 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $57,440,000 after acquiring an additional 4,931 shares in the last quarter. Meadow Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of ASGN in the 1st quarter worth approximately $512,000. Argent Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 2,868 shares during the period. Finally, LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of ASGN during the 1st quarter worth approximately $154,000. 95.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

ASGN Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of ASGN stock traded down $0.42 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $92.09. 282,915 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 295,794. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $93.59 and its 200 day simple moving average is $95.26. ASGN has a twelve month low of $76.70 and a twelve month high of $106.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.32, a P/E/G ratio of 14.49 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 2.34 and a current ratio of 2.34.

ASGN (NYSE:ASGN) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The business services provider reported $1.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.03. ASGN had a return on equity of 14.30% and a net margin of 4.56%. The company had revenue of $1.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.05 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.59 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that ASGN will post 5.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $115.00 target price on shares of ASGN in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on ASGN from $95.00 to $88.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $97.22.

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.