The Shyft Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SHYF) Short Interest Down 19.6% in March

The Shyft Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SHYF - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant decrease in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,150,000 shares, a decrease of 19.6% from the March 15th total of 1,430,000 shares. Currently, 3.8% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 269,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.3 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, DA Davidson cut their target price on shares of The Shyft Group from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 27th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $14.00.

Insider Activity

In other The Shyft Group news, CEO John Albert Dunn acquired 4,545 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $11.00 per share, for a total transaction of $49,995.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 35,894 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $394,834. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 2.26% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SHYF. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio grew its position in The Shyft Group by 55.8% in the third quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 1,301 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 466 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP grew its position in shares of The Shyft Group by 1,501.9% in the 1st quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,650 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 1,547 shares during the period. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd grew its position in shares of The Shyft Group by 33.2% in the 2nd quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd now owns 2,339 shares of the company's stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 583 shares during the period. Peoples Bank KS bought a new position in shares of The Shyft Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, Citigroup Inc. grew its position in shares of The Shyft Group by 29.7% in the 1st quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 2,386 shares of the company's stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 547 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 85.84% of the company's stock.

The Shyft Group Stock Down 2.6 %

Shares of SHYF stock traded down $0.31 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $11.51. 146,149 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 270,637. The business has a 50 day moving average of $11.26 and a two-hundred day moving average of $11.79. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The Shyft Group has a 52 week low of $9.81 and a 52 week high of $27.36. The company has a market capitalization of $395.14 million, a PE ratio of 63.95 and a beta of 1.67.

The Shyft Group (NASDAQ:SHYF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 22nd. The company reported ($0.08) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.11) by $0.03. The Shyft Group had a net margin of 0.74% and a return on equity of 4.91%. The company had revenue of $202.33 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $205.40 million. Analysts anticipate that The Shyft Group will post 0.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Shyft Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 18th. Investors of record on Friday, February 16th were given a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 15th. The Shyft Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 111.12%.

About The Shyft Group

The Shyft Group, Inc engages in the manufacture and assembly of specialty vehicles for the commercial and recreational vehicle industries in the United States and internationally. It operates in two segments, Fleet Vehicles and Services, and Specialty Vehicles. The Fleet Vehicles and Services segment offers commercial vehicles used in the e-commerce/last mile/parcel delivery, beverage and grocery delivery, laundry and linen, mobile retail, and trades and construction industries.