Genie Energy Ltd. (NYSE:GNE) Short Interest Update

Key Points

• Short interest fell 20.0% to 453,912 shares as of March 13, representing about 2.1% of the stock and a days-to-cover ratio of 8.1 based on average daily volume.
• Institutional ownership is high at 49.15%, with notable moves including Geode Capital increasing its stake by 22.5% to 559,916 shares and new positions from Prudential and HSBC.
• Genie Energy trades around $13.79 with a market cap of $365.4M and a P/E of 17.23, and it recently paid a quarterly dividend of $0.075 (annualized $0.30) for a ~2.2% yield and a 37.5% payout ratio.

Genie Energy Ltd. (NYSE:GNE - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 453,912 shares, a decline of 20.0% from the February 26th total of 567,642 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 56,178 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 8.1 days. Approximately 2.1% of the company's stock are sold short.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on GNE. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Genie Energy in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Genie Energy from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, March 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold".

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Genie Energy

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Genie Energy by 22.5% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 559,916 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $15,054,000 after buying an additional 102,702 shares in the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Genie Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,364,000. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Genie Energy by 27.3% during the 2nd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 16,232 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $436,000 after acquiring an additional 3,486 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new stake in Genie Energy during the 2nd quarter worth $1,320,000. Finally, Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey lifted its position in Genie Energy by 29.1% in the second quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey now owns 4,691 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $126,000 after acquiring an additional 1,057 shares during the last quarter. 49.15% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Genie Energy Stock Up 0.1%

Genie Energy stock opened at $13.79 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $365.36 million, a PE ratio of 17.23 and a beta of 0.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 1.91 and a quick ratio of 1.74. The stock's fifty day moving average is $14.19 and its two-hundred day moving average is $14.53. Genie Energy has a 1-year low of $13.27 and a 1-year high of $28.47.

Genie Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 26th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 18th were issued a $0.075 dividend. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 18th. Genie Energy's dividend payout ratio is 37.50%.

Genie Energy Company Profile

Genie Energy Ltd. NYSE: GNE is a diversified energy holding company that operates through two primary segments: upstream oil and natural gas exploration and retail energy supply. Its exploration arm, Genie Energy E&P, pursues development of oil shale resources and conventional hydrocarbon deposits, holding licenses for projects in regions such as Israel's Shefela basin and Jordan's oil shale formations. The division also explores select opportunities in North America, leveraging technical partnerships to advance resource evaluation and pilot production programs.

Genie Retail Energy provides electricity and natural gas to residential and small commercial customers under regulated and deregulated frameworks.

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