IDACORP, Inc. (NYSE:IDA) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

IDACORP, Inc. (NYSE:IDA - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,980,000 shares, an increase of 101.4% from the April 30th total of 1,480,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 433,300 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 6.9 days. Currently, 5.6% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On IDACORP

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of IDACORP by 43.3% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,424,956 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $374,279,000 after buying an additional 1,035,133 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC purchased a new position in IDACORP in the first quarter worth about $71,437,000. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. increased its stake in IDACORP by 75.4% during the fourth quarter. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. now owns 998,383 shares of the energy company's stock worth $109,103,000 after acquiring an additional 429,276 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in IDACORP during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,104,000. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its stake in shares of IDACORP by 596.7% in the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 379,312 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $41,451,000 after purchasing an additional 324,866 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Guggenheim lifted their target price on shares of IDACORP from $121.00 to $126.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Wall Street Zen cut IDACORP from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley set a $128.00 price objective on IDACORP and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. UBS Group increased their target price on IDACORP from $117.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised IDACORP from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, IDACORP currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $123.14.

IDACORP Price Performance

Shares of IDA stock traded up $0.78 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $118.96. The stock had a trading volume of 679,420 shares, compared to its average volume of 352,046. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.70 and a quick ratio of 1.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.71, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 0.59. IDACORP has a one year low of $90.64 and a one year high of $120.84. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $116.16 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $113.91.

IDACORP (NYSE:IDA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The energy company reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.03 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $432.46 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $442.24 million. IDACORP had a return on equity of 9.23% and a net margin of 15.83%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.95 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that IDACORP will post 5.81 EPS for the current year.

IDACORP Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Monday, May 5th were given a $0.86 dividend. This represents a $3.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.89%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 5th. IDACORP's dividend payout ratio is presently 61.10%.

About IDACORP

IDACORP, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, distribution, purchase, and sale of electric energy in the United States. The company operates 17 hydropower generating plants located in southern Idaho and eastern Oregon; three natural gas-fired plants in southern Idaho; and interests in two coal-fired steam electric generating plants located in Wyoming and Nevada.