Short Interest in Elme Communities (NYSE:ELME) Drops By 17.3%

Elme Communities (NYSE:ELME - Get Free Report) saw a significant decline in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,050,000 shares, a decline of 17.3% from the March 15th total of 2,480,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 677,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.0 days. Approximately 2.4% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on ELME shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Elme Communities from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Truist Financial upgraded shares of Elme Communities from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th.

Elme Communities Stock Performance

Shares of ELME traded down $0.10 on Friday, reaching $15.53. 131,859 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 577,620. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $16.52 and its 200-day moving average price is $16.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.58 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The firm has a market cap of $1.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -111.00 and a beta of 0.84. Elme Communities has a 12 month low of $13.95 and a 12 month high of $18.49.

Elme Communities (NYSE:ELME - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $0.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.03) by $0.26. Elme Communities had a negative net margin of 5.42% and a negative return on equity of 1.18%. Equities analysts forecast that Elme Communities will post 0.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Elme Communities Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 19th were issued a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.64%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 19th. Elme Communities's payout ratio is -514.29%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Elme Communities

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Argosy Lionbridge Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Elme Communities during the fourth quarter valued at $25,275,000. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in Elme Communities by 54.9% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,510,239 shares of the company's stock valued at $23,061,000 after purchasing an additional 535,440 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its position in Elme Communities by 38.7% in the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,461,007 shares of the company's stock valued at $22,310,000 after buying an additional 407,607 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in Elme Communities by 97.0% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 814,233 shares of the company's stock worth $12,433,000 after buying an additional 400,834 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Elme Communities by 34.1% during the fourth quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 899,141 shares of the company's stock worth $13,730,000 after buying an additional 228,419 shares in the last quarter. 87.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Elme Communities

Elme Communities is committed to elevating what home can be for middle-income renters by providing a higher level of quality, service, and experience. The Company is a multifamily real estate investment trust that owns and operates approximately 9,400 apartment homes in the Washington, DC metro and the Atlanta metro regions, and owns approximately 300,000 square feet of commercial space.