Eni S.p.A. (NYSE:E) Short Interest Update

Eni S.p.A. (NYSE:E - Get Free Report) saw a large growth in short interest in May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totalling 816,100 shares, a growth of 42.8% from the April 30th total of 571,300 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 351,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.3 days. Approximately 0.1% of the company's shares are short sold.

ENI Stock Performance

E traded down $0.10 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $30.28. 268,199 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 307,689. ENI has a one year low of $24.65 and a one year high of $33.12. The stock's fifty day moving average is $28.75 and its 200 day moving average is $28.66. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The firm has a market cap of $51.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.89.

ENI (NYSE:E - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.01. ENI had a net margin of 2.76% and a return on equity of 11.03%. The company had revenue of $25.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $25.52 billion. As a group, equities analysts predict that ENI will post 3.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ENI Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a -- dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 20th will be given a dividend of $0.5391 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 5.5%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 20th. This is a boost from ENI's previous -- dividend of $0.35. ENI's dividend payout ratio is currently 89.82%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on E shares. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of ENI in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Redburn Atlantic cut shares of ENI from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Kepler Capital Markets downgraded shares of ENI from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of ENI from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $31.60.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in E. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in ENI by 3.4% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 15,260 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $472,000 after purchasing an additional 495 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of ENI by 4.1% in the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 65,502 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $2,026,000 after purchasing an additional 2,586 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in shares of ENI by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 69,243 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $2,141,000 after buying an additional 1,420 shares in the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in ENI by 28.1% in the 1st quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 35,230 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock worth $1,090,000 after buying an additional 7,734 shares during the period. Finally, Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. grew its stake in ENI by 11.4% in the 1st quarter. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. now owns 64,284 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $1,988,000 after buying an additional 6,572 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 1.18% of the company's stock.

About ENI

Eni SpA engages in the exploration, production, refining, and sale of oil, gas, electricity, and chemicals. It operates through the following segments: Exploration and Production, Global Gas and LNG Portfolio, Refining & Marketing and Chemicals, Power & Renewables, and Corporate and Other Activities.