Ducommun Incorporated (NYSE:DCO) Short Interest Up 43.8% in April

Key Points

• Short interest jumped 43.8% in April to 605,382 shares (about 4.3% of float), leaving a days-to-cover ratio of roughly 2.7 based on average daily volume.
• Director Richard A. Baldridge sold 10,440 shares at an average $130.83 (a 34.18% reduction in his stake); corporate insiders own about 5% of the company.
• Wall Street sentiment is upbeat—consensus rating is a “Moderate Buy” with an average target of $144.50 (Goldman Sachs and RBC raised targets to $151 and $150 respectively)—and Ducommun recently beat EPS estimates while reporting year-over-year revenue growth.

Ducommun Incorporated (NYSE:DCO - Get Free Report) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totaling 605,382 shares, a growth of 43.8% from the March 31st total of 420,961 shares. Approximately 4.3% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 225,119 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.7 days.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Richard A. Baldridge sold 10,440 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.83, for a total transaction of $1,365,865.20. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 20,100 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,629,683. This trade represents a 34.18% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 5.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in DCO. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in Ducommun by 14.5% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 83,479 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $4,844,000 after purchasing an additional 10,574 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Ducommun by 4.1% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 8,050 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $467,000 after buying an additional 319 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ducommun by 618.8% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 345 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 297 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Ducommun by 10.0% during the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 5,809 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $480,000 after acquiring an additional 528 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP grew its position in Ducommun by 7.9% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 71,545 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $5,912,000 after acquiring an additional 5,212 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.15% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Ducommun from $134.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. B. Riley Financial restated a "buy" rating on shares of Ducommun in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Ducommun from $143.00 to $141.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. Wall Street Zen raised Ducommun from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, April 18th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Ducommun from $142.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $144.50.

Ducommun Stock Performance

DCO opened at $140.01 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 2.47 and a current ratio of 3.50. Ducommun has a 52-week low of $56.21 and a 52-week high of $145.90. The firm has a market cap of $2.10 billion, a P/E ratio of -61.61 and a beta of 1.00. The business's fifty day moving average is $130.34 and its 200-day moving average is $110.69.

Ducommun (NYSE:DCO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The aerospace company reported $1.05 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.14. Ducommun had a positive return on equity of 8.47% and a negative net margin of 4.11%.The business had revenue of $215.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $217.42 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.75 earnings per share. Ducommun's revenue for the quarter was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Ducommun will post 4.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ducommun Company Profile

Ducommun Incorporated, through its Electronics and Structures segments, provides engineered products and integrated systems for the global aerospace, defense and space markets. The Electronics segment focuses on high-reliability electronic assemblies, cable and wire harnesses, connector systems and harsh environment electronics for flight-critical applications. In the Structures segment, Ducommun manufactures complex metallic and composite components such as flight control surfaces, skin panels, heat exchangers and other aerostructures for commercial and military platforms.

Founded in 1849 in California as a hardware and stagecoach parts supplier, Ducommun expanded into aerospace manufacturing during World War II and has since grown its capabilities through targeted acquisitions and organic investments.

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