Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:SWBI) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:SWBI) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,340,000 shares, an increase of 21.9% from the March 15th total of 1,920,000 shares. Currently, 5.4% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 487,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.8 days.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Lesa Sroufe & Co acquired a new position in shares of Smith & Wesson Brands during the first quarter worth approximately $735,000. Byrne Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Smith & Wesson Brands by 145.0% during the first quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 5,391 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 3,191 shares in the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in shares of Smith & Wesson Brands in the 4th quarter worth approximately $686,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in Smith & Wesson Brands by 34.2% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 102,441 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,035,000 after purchasing an additional 26,086 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vident Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in Smith & Wesson Brands by 59.6% during the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 50,924 shares of the company’s stock worth $515,000 after buying an additional 19,017 shares in the last quarter. 59.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Lake Street Capital reduced their price objective on Smith & Wesson Brands from $13.00 to $12.50 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 7th.

Smith & Wesson Brands Stock Up 0.7 %

NASDAQ SWBI traded up $0.07 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $9.44. 233,855 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 479,545. The company has a current ratio of 3.97, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $9.86 and a 200-day simple moving average of $11.12. The company has a market cap of $415.39 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.10 and a beta of 1.09. Smith & Wesson Brands has a 1-year low of $8.38 and a 1-year high of $17.33.

Smith & Wesson Brands (NASDAQ:SWBI) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $0.02 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.02. Smith & Wesson Brands had a return on equity of 8.78% and a net margin of 7.00%. The company had revenue of $115.89 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $119.46 million. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Smith & Wesson Brands will post 0.47 EPS for the current year.

Smith & Wesson Brands Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 20th were issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 20th. Smith & Wesson Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 80.00%.

About Smith & Wesson Brands

Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc is a holding company, which engages in the manufacture, design, and provision of firearms. Its portfolio includes handguns, long guns, handcuffs, suppressor, and other firearm-related products. The firm’s brands are Smith & Wesson, M&P, Thompson/Center Arms, and Gemtech.