Covenant Logistics Group, Inc. (NYSE:CVLG) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Key Points

• Short interest surged 53.5% to 1,003,778 shares as of August 14, representing about 6.2% of Covenant Logistics Group’s outstanding shares and 4.8 days of average trading volume.
• Institutional investors own approximately 83.72% of the company, with Ranger Investment Management initiating a $10.5 million position and several other funds increasing or establishing stakes.
• Shares recently traded at $35.21, well below the analyst consensus price target of $51.80; analysts maintain a consensus “Buy” rating, while the company reported quarterly EPS of $0.42 on revenue of $332.87 million.

Covenant Logistics Group, Inc. (NYSE:CVLG - Get Free Report) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of August. As of August 14th, there was short interest totaling 1,003,778 shares, an increase of 53.5% from the July 30th total of 653,929 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 209,432 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.8 days. Approximately 6.2% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Covenant Logistics Group

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Ranger Investment Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of Covenant Logistics Group in the second quarter valued at $10,456,000. Prescott Group Capital Management L.L.C. acquired a new stake in shares of Covenant Logistics Group during the 4th quarter valued at $353,000. Wesbanco Bank Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Covenant Logistics Group during the 4th quarter worth $474,000. Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its holdings in shares of Covenant Logistics Group by 61.1% in the 1st quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 38,453 shares of the company's stock worth $1,044,000 after acquiring an additional 14,590 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Royce & Associates LP grew its holdings in shares of Covenant Logistics Group by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 316,868 shares of the company's stock worth $6,984,000 after acquiring an additional 18,220 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.72% of the company's stock.

Covenant Logistics Group Price Performance

Covenant Logistics Group stock traded down $0.14 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $35.21. 2,567 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 181,626. The firm has a market cap of $893.63 million, a P/E ratio of 320.12 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $40.63 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $35.44. Covenant Logistics Group has a 1-year low of $18.00 and a 1-year high of $49.88.

Covenant Logistics Group (NYSE:CVLG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Covenant Logistics Group had a return on equity of 9.14% and a net margin of 0.31%.The company had revenue of $332.87 million for the quarter. As a group, analysts forecast that Covenant Logistics Group will post 1.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CVLG has been the topic of several recent research reports. Citizens Jmp started coverage on Covenant Logistics Group in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. They issued a "market outperform" rating and a $60.00 price target on the stock. Zacks Research raised Covenant Logistics Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Stephens set a $54.00 target price on Covenant Logistics Group and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings upgraded Covenant Logistics Group from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $50.00 price target on shares of Covenant Logistics Group and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Covenant Logistics Group presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $51.80.

Covenant Logistics Group Company Profile

Covenant Logistics Group provides a comprehensive suite of transportation and logistics services across North America. The company's core offerings include less‐than‐truckload (LTL) and full truckload hauling, temperature‐controlled freight, intermodal transportation and freight brokerage. Covenant also delivers specialized solutions such as expedited “hot‐shot” deliveries, cross‐border shipping to Canada and Mexico, and dedicated contract carriage for time‐sensitive or high‐value shipments.

With a network of service centers, terminals and partner carriers strategically located throughout the United States, Covenant supports diverse industries including food and beverage, automotive, retail, energy and manufacturing.

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