The Shyft Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SHYF) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

The Shyft Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SHYF) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 532,200 shares, a decrease of 52.9% from the December 15th total of 1,130,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 261,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.0 days. Approximately 1.7% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On The Shyft Group

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Royce & Associates LP lifted its stake in shares of The Shyft Group by 2.7% during the third quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 953,018 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,960,000 after buying an additional 24,770 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in The Shyft Group by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 773,150 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,705,000 after acquiring an additional 9,588 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of The Shyft Group by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 706,780 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,870,000 after purchasing an additional 5,682 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of The Shyft Group by 15.6% during the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 666,679 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,907,000 after purchasing an additional 89,951 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. grew its position in shares of The Shyft Group by 16.2% in the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 564,242 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,081,000 after purchasing an additional 78,550 shares during the period. 85.84% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on SHYF shares. DA Davidson raised The Shyft Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $15.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $16.00 price objective on shares of The Shyft Group in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th.

The Shyft Group Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SHYF traded down $0.03 during trading on Thursday, reaching $12.33. The company had a trading volume of 227,917 shares, compared to its average volume of 251,552. The company has a current ratio of 1.82, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The Shyft Group has a twelve month low of $9.81 and a twelve month high of $17.56. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $12.72 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $12.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $425.26 million, a PE ratio of -102.75 and a beta of 1.66.

The Shyft Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a $0.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.62%. The Shyft Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -166.67%.

The Shyft Group Company Profile

The Shyft Group, Inc engages in the manufacture and assembly of specialty vehicles for the commercial and recreational vehicle industries in the United States and internationally. It operates in two segments, Fleet Vehicles and Services, and Specialty Vehicles. The Fleet Vehicles and Services segment offers commercial vehicles used in the e-commerce/last mile/parcel delivery, beverage and grocery delivery, laundry and linen, mobile retail, and trades and construction industries.