Global Partners LP (NYSE:GLP) Short Interest Update

Key Points

• Short interest fell 27.4% in March to 259,599 shares (about 1.3% of the float) with a days-to-cover ratio of 4.3.
• Global Partners declared a quarterly dividend of $0.76 (annualized $3.04) for a 6.6% yield, but the payout ratio is very high at 144.08%.
• The company missed quarterly expectations—EPS $0.54 vs. $0.60 and revenue $4.65B vs. $6.94B consensus—and carries an average analyst rating of Hold with a $46 target.

Global Partners LP (NYSE:GLP - Get Free Report) saw a large decline in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 259,599 shares, a decline of 27.4% from the March 15th total of 357,732 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 60,111 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.3 days. Currently, 1.3% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Global Partners Price Performance

Shares of Global Partners stock traded down $0.13 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $45.85. The company's stock had a trading volume of 20,471 shares, compared to its average volume of 50,359. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $46.90 and a 200-day moving average price of $45.16. Global Partners has a one year low of $39.58 and a one year high of $56.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.74, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 0.63. The stock has a market cap of $1.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.73 and a beta of 1.04.

Global Partners (NYSE:GLP - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, February 27th. The energy company reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.60 by ($0.06). Global Partners had a return on equity of 15.99% and a net margin of 0.53%.The business had revenue of $4.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.94 billion. On average, analysts predict that Global Partners will post 2.13 EPS for the current year.

Global Partners Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Investors of record on Monday, February 9th were issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.6%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 9th. This is a positive change from Global Partners's previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. Global Partners's payout ratio is currently 144.08%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Global Partners

In related news, COO Mark Romaine sold 7,500 shares of Global Partners stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.39, for a total transaction of $355,425.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 151,609 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,184,750.51. The trade was a 4.71% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 24,063 shares of company stock worth $1,146,471. 41.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Global Partners

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Jane Street Group LLC bought a new position in Global Partners in the 1st quarter worth about $862,000. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in Global Partners by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 137,822 shares of the energy company's stock worth $7,267,000 after acquiring an additional 1,227 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in Global Partners by 89.1% in the 2nd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 4,245 shares of the energy company's stock worth $224,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its stake in Global Partners by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 30,094 shares of the energy company's stock worth $1,445,000 after acquiring an additional 375 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gilman Hill Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Global Partners by 20.1% in the 3rd quarter. Gilman Hill Asset Management LLC now owns 43,592 shares of the energy company's stock worth $2,092,000 after acquiring an additional 7,285 shares in the last quarter. 38.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on GLP. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Global Partners from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Global Partners in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Global Partners from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Global Partners from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, March 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, Global Partners currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $46.00.

Global Partners Company Profile

Global Partners LP is a publicly traded master limited partnership engaged in the wholesale distribution and retail marketing of petroleum products. The company sources refined petroleum products from major refineries and suppliers and transports them through an integrated network of pipelines, terminals and storage facilities. Global Partners focuses on delivering fuel and related services to commercial, industrial and residential customers, positioning itself as a key midstream and downstream energy operator in its core markets.

Through its extensive terminal network in the northeastern United States and eastern Canada, Global Partners supplies gasoline, diesel, home heating oil, kerosene, propane and biofuels to a broad customer base.

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