McGrath RentCorp (NASDAQ:MGRC) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

McGrath RentCorp (NASDAQ:MGRC - Get Free Report) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totalling 594,400 shares, a growth of 22.4% from the April 30th total of 485,600 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 148,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.0 days. Currently, 2.5% of the company's shares are sold short.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other McGrath RentCorp news, CAO David M. Whitney sold 500 shares of McGrath RentCorp stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.01, for a total transaction of $58,005.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 8,915 shares in the company, valued at $1,034,229.15. This trade represents a 5.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Philip B. Hawkins sold 4,804 shares of McGrath RentCorp stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.57, for a total transaction of $497,550.28. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 3,150 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $326,245.50. This represents a 60.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 18,313 shares of company stock valued at $2,005,372 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On McGrath RentCorp

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MGRC. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in McGrath RentCorp by 29.8% in the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 16,399 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,834,000 after acquiring an additional 3,767 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its position in shares of McGrath RentCorp by 1,487.6% in the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,826 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $312,000 after purchasing an additional 2,648 shares during the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of McGrath RentCorp in the 4th quarter valued at $3,833,000. Nuveen Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of McGrath RentCorp by 11.6% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 97,441 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $10,896,000 after purchasing an additional 10,107 shares in the last quarter. Finally, One Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of McGrath RentCorp by 40.1% during the 4th quarter. One Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 16,857 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,885,000 after purchasing an additional 4,824 shares during the last quarter. 92.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

McGrath RentCorp Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of MGRC traded up $0.62 during trading on Friday, reaching $114.24. 140,135 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 183,599. The stock has a market cap of $2.81 billion, a PE ratio of 12.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.66. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $109.43 and a 200-day simple moving average of $114.97. McGrath RentCorp has a twelve month low of $95.50 and a twelve month high of $129.93.

McGrath RentCorp (NASDAQ:MGRC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.02 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $195.42 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $189.03 million. McGrath RentCorp had a net margin of 25.44% and a return on equity of 13.68%. The firm's revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.93 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that McGrath RentCorp will post 6.18 EPS for the current year.

McGrath RentCorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 17th will be paid a $0.485 dividend. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 17th. McGrath RentCorp's payout ratio is presently 20.10%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of McGrath RentCorp from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th.

About McGrath RentCorp

McGrath RentCorp operates as a business to business rental company in the United States and internationally. It rents and sells relocatable modular buildings, portable storage containers, and electronic test equipment. The company operates through four segments: Mobile Modular, Portable Storage, TRS-RenTelco, and Enviroplex.