Citi Trends, Inc. (NASDAQ:CTRN) Short Interest Update

Key Points

• Short interest jumped 22.1% in March to 585,062 shares, equal to about 7.3% of the stock and an 8.9‑day short‑interest ratio based on average daily volume.
• Citi Trends beat the quarter's estimates, reporting EPS of $0.85 versus $0.78 and revenue of $230.39M versus $227.42M, but posted a thin net margin (0.64%) and a negative return on equity (-4.85%).
• Stock and analyst backdrop: shares traded at $42.33 (down 0.9%), market cap roughly $353M with a P/E of ~71.8, and Wall Street shows mixed views—a consensus "Hold" with a $68 price target (two Buys, one Sell).

Citi Trends, Inc. (NASDAQ:CTRN - Get Free Report) was the target of a large increase in short interest in March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 585,062 shares, an increase of 22.1% from the February 26th total of 479,073 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 65,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 8.9 days. Approximately 7.3% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Citi Trends

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in Citi Trends by 143.3% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,051 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 619 shares during the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its holdings in shares of Citi Trends by 175.0% in the fourth quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 1,100 shares of the company's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 700 shares during the last quarter. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Citi Trends in the fourth quarter worth $51,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Citi Trends by 277.1% in the fourth quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,648 shares of the company's stock worth $68,000 after buying an additional 1,211 shares during the period. Finally, CWM LLC raised its holdings in Citi Trends by 758.3% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,678 shares of the company's stock valued at $83,000 after buying an additional 2,366 shares during the last quarter.

Citi Trends Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of Citi Trends stock traded down $0.39 during trading on Monday, reaching $42.33. The company's stock had a trading volume of 8,357 shares, compared to its average volume of 97,429. Citi Trends has a 52-week low of $16.82 and a 52-week high of $56.78. The firm's 50-day moving average is $45.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is $41.51. The company has a market cap of $353.49 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 71.75 and a beta of 2.06.

Citi Trends (NASDAQ:CTRN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 17th. The company reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.78 by $0.07. Citi Trends had a net margin of 0.64% and a negative return on equity of 4.85%. The business had revenue of $230.39 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $227.42 million.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on CTRN. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Citi Trends from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Craig Hallum reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Citi Trends in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. DA Davidson set a $68.00 price target on Citi Trends in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Citi Trends in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $68.00.

Citi Trends Company Profile

Citi Trends, Inc NASDAQ: CTRN is an off-price retail apparel chain that focuses on value-priced urban fashion apparel and accessories for men, women, and children. Headquartered in Savannah, Georgia, the company offers a broad assortment of merchandise, including denim, sportswear, activewear, and seasonal styles, complemented by footwear, jewelry, cosmetics, and home goods. Through its purchasing model, Citi Trends sources closeouts, overstocks and canceled orders from name-brand vendors, enabling it to offer trending styles at competitive price points.

The company operates more than 500 stores across the Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States, with typical store footprints of approximately 11,000 square feet.

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