Burlington Stores, Inc. (NYSE:BURL) Stock Short Interest Climbs 58.3%

Key Points

• Short interest surged 58.3% to 3.14 million Burlington Stores shares as of September 15, representing about 5.1% of shares outstanding and two days of average trading volume.
• Burlington’s stock traded at $267.64, below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages, despite the company exceeding quarterly EPS estimates and reporting 11% year-over-year revenue growth.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $370.75, although recent targets ranged from $323 to $410.

Burlington Stores, Inc. (NYSE:BURL - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totaling 3,140,030 shares, an increase of 58.3% from the August 31st total of 1,983,251 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,592,550 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.0 days. Approximately 5.1% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Burlington Stores Price Performance

Burlington Stores stock traded down $2.41 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $267.64. 1,148,922 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,571,322. Burlington Stores has a 12-month low of $226.85 and a 12-month high of $378.33. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $302.90 and a two-hundred day moving average of $316.10. The company has a market cap of $16.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.03, a PEG ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.42.

Burlington Stores (NYSE:BURL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 27th. The company reported $2.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.77. Burlington Stores had a net margin of 5.85% and a return on equity of 41.72%. The firm had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.03 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.72 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. Burlington Stores has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 1.600-1.700 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 11.770-11.970 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Burlington Stores will post 11.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Burlington Stores

In related news, CMO Jennifer Vecchio sold 1,678 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $369.04, for a total transaction of $619,249.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer directly owned 77,661 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,660,015.44. The trade was a 2.11% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Burlington Stores

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Andra AP fonden raised its stake in shares of Burlington Stores by 959.8% in the second quarter. Andra AP fonden now owns 39,530 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,523,000 after acquiring an additional 35,800 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Burlington Stores by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,064 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,287,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC raised its position in Burlington Stores by 6.4% in the 2nd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 13,215 shares of the company's stock worth $4,187,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares during the period. National Pension Service raised its position in Burlington Stores by 114.6% in the 2nd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 10,150 shares of the company's stock worth $3,216,000 after purchasing an additional 5,420 shares during the period. Finally, WINTON GROUP Ltd bought a new stake in Burlington Stores in the second quarter worth about $1,130,000.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BURL has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Burlington Stores from $365.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on Burlington Stores from $394.00 to $382.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 31st. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price objective on Burlington Stores from $365.00 to $355.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on Burlington Stores from $367.00 to $323.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 28th. Finally, Evercore reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $400.00 target price on shares of Burlington Stores in a research report on Monday, August 17th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Burlington Stores presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $370.75.

Burlington Stores Company Profile

Burlington Stores, Inc is an off-price retailer operating under the Burlington brand. The company offers a broad assortment of branded and private-label merchandise at prices generally below those of department stores and specialty retailers.

Its product categories include women's, men's and children's clothing; footwear; accessories; beauty products; home goods; and baby merchandise. Burlington's stores typically feature a continuously changing selection sourced through opportunistic purchasing, allowing the company to offer seasonal and fashion-oriented products across multiple departments.

The company was founded in 1972 as Burlington Coat Factory Warehouse Corporation and initially focused on selling coats and outerwear.

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