Short Interest in ACCO Brands Co. (NYSE:ACCO) Grows By 22.6%

ACCO Brands Co. (NYSE:ACCO) saw a significant growth in short interest during the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,660,000 shares, a growth of 22.6% from the February 28th total of 2,170,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 836,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.2 days. Currently, 3.0% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on ACCO. StockNews.com upgraded ACCO Brands from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 28th. Barrington Research dropped their price target on ACCO Brands from $7.50 to $7.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th.

ACCO Brands Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE ACCO traded up $0.03 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $4.28. 576,184 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 663,790. ACCO Brands has a 12-month low of $4.05 and a 12-month high of $6.44. The firm has a market cap of $397.53 million, a P/E ratio of -4.04, a P/E/G ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 1.74. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $4.84 and a 200 day moving average price of $5.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.60.

ACCO Brands (NYSE:ACCO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The industrial products company reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.01). ACCO Brands had a positive return on equity of 14.96% and a negative net margin of 6.10%. The firm had revenue of $448.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $455.06 million. As a group, analysts expect that ACCO Brands will post 1.02 earnings per share for the current year.

ACCO Brands Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.01%. ACCO Brands’s payout ratio is -28.30%.

Institutional Trading of ACCO Brands

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of ACCO Brands by 123.0% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,911 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 3,260 shares during the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in ACCO Brands during the 3rd quarter valued at about $61,000. Burns Matteson Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in ACCO Brands during the 4th quarter valued at about $61,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in ACCO Brands in the third quarter worth about $63,000. Finally, Xponance Inc. bought a new position in shares of ACCO Brands in the fourth quarter worth approximately $65,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.56% of the company’s stock.

ACCO Brands Company Profile

ACCO Brands Corporation designs, manufactures, and markets consumer, school, technology, and office products. It operates through three segments: ACCO Brands North America, ACCO Brands EMEA, and ACCO Brands International. The company provides computer and gaming accessories, planners, dry erase boards, school notebooks, and janitorial supplies; storage and organization products, such as lever-arch binders, sheet protectors, and indexes; sheet protectors and indexes; laminating, binding, and shredding machines; writing instruments and art products; stapling and punching products; and do-it-yourself tools.