Valued with a market capitalization of $21.3 billion, Veralto Corporation (VLTO) is a Waltham, Massachusetts-based company that provides water testing and treatment, marking and coding, and color and packaging solutions.
This industrial company has significantly underperformed the broader market over the past 52 weeks. VLTO shares have fallen 14% during this period, while the broader S&P 500 index ($SPX) has gained 27.4%. Additionally, on a year-over-year basis, the stock is down 13%, compared to SPX’s gain of 8.8%.
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Zooming in even further, VLTO has also notably lagged the State Street Industrials Select Sector ETF SPDR (XLI)’s rise of 21.6% over the past 52 weeks and 10.7% on a year-over-year basis.
On April 28, VLTO posted better-than-expected first-quarter results and its shares rose 4.5% in the following trading session. The company’s revenue rose 6.7% year over year to $1.4 billion, beating analyst estimates by 1.4%. Additionally, its adjusted EPS of $1.07 grew 12.6% from the prior-year quarter, beating consensus expectations of $1.02.
For the current fiscal year, which ends in December, analysts expect VLTO’s EPS to grow 8.2% year-over-year to $4.23. The company’s track record of earnings surprises is promising. It surpassed consensus estimates in each of the last four quarters.
Among the 18 analysts covering the stock, the consensus rating is “Moderate Buy,” which is based on 10 “Strong Buy” and eight “Hold” ratings.
The setup is slightly more bullish than two months ago, with nine analysts suggesting a “Strong Buy” rating.
On May 1, UBS maintained a “Neutral” rating on VLTO and raised its price target to $101, indicating 16.4% upside potential from current levels.
The average price target of $106.75 suggests a 23% premium to its current price levels, while its Street high price target of $115 implies a potential upside of 32.5%.
On the date of publication, Neharika Jain had no (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article are for informational purposes only. This article was originally published on Barchart.com