Interface (NASDAQ:TILE) Raised to "Buy" at StockNews.com

Interface (NASDAQ:TILE - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday.

Separately, Barrington Research reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $30.00 target price on shares of Interface in a research report on Friday, May 2nd.

Interface Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ TILE traded up $0.27 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $20.93. The stock had a trading volume of 342,653 shares, compared to its average volume of 509,654. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 2.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Interface has a 1 year low of $14.13 and a 1 year high of $27.34. The company has a market capitalization of $1.22 billion, a PE ratio of 14.64, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.95. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $19.12 and a 200-day simple moving average of $22.20.

Interface (NASDAQ:TILE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 2nd. The textile maker reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $297.41 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $297.11 million. Interface had a return on equity of 19.91% and a net margin of 6.49%. The company's revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.24 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Interface will post 1.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Daniel T. Hendrix sold 7,500 shares of Interface stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.95, for a total transaction of $149,625.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 96,147 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,918,132.65. This trade represents a 7.24% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 2.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Interface

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Interface by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,159,773 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $122,210,000 after buying an additional 43,309 shares during the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Interface in the first quarter valued at about $44,969,000. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in shares of Interface by 12.3% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,992,296 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $48,512,000 after purchasing an additional 218,113 shares during the last quarter. Hood River Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Interface in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,897,000. Finally, GW&K Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Interface by 15.0% during the 1st quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 1,183,961 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $23,490,000 after purchasing an additional 154,872 shares in the last quarter. 98.34% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Interface

Interface, Inc designs, produces, and sells modular carpet products primarily worldwide. The company operates in two segments, Americas (AMS), and Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia (EAAA). The company offers modular carpets under the Interface and FLOR brand names; luxury vinyl tiles; carpet tiles under the CQuestGB name for use in commercial interiors, include offices, healthcare facilities, airports, educational and other institutions, hospitality spaces, and retail facilities, as well as residential interiors; and modular resilient flooring products.