Short Interest in AudioCodes Ltd. (NASDAQ:AUDC) Increases By 64.0%

Key Points

• Short interest in AudioCodes Ltd. rose by 64.0% in July, with a total of 350,700 shares shorted, leading to a short-interest ratio of 3.4 days.
• The company recently announced a dividend of $0.20 per share, representing a yield of 350.0%, to be paid on August 28th.
• Analysts have mixed views on AudioCodes, with one downgrading the stock from "buy" to "hold" while another maintains a "buy" rating with a target price of $12.50.

AudioCodes Ltd. (NASDAQ:AUDC - Get Free Report) was the target of a large growth in short interest in July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totaling 350,700 shares, agrowthof64.0% from the July 15th total of 213,800 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 102,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.4 days. Approximately1.7% of the company's stock are sold short. Approximately1.7% of the company's stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 102,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.4 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $12.50 price target on shares of AudioCodes in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of AudioCodes from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $11.25.

Institutional Trading of AudioCodes

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new stake in AudioCodes during the fourth quarter worth about $406,000. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of AudioCodes by 19.2% in the fourth quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 190,338 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $1,854,000 after purchasing an additional 30,611 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP boosted its position in AudioCodes by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 75,653 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $737,000 after acquiring an additional 1,674 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in AudioCodes by 18.8% during the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 62,149 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $585,000 after acquiring an additional 9,840 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Heartland Advisors Inc. boosted its position in AudioCodes by 2.5% during the first quarter. Heartland Advisors Inc. now owns 880,250 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $8,292,000 after acquiring an additional 21,650 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.05% of the company's stock.

AudioCodes Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of AudioCodes stock traded up $0.11 during trading on Friday, reaching $9.21. The company's stock had a trading volume of 64,938 shares, compared to its average volume of 143,537. AudioCodes has a 12-month low of $7.70 and a 12-month high of $12.72. The company has a market capitalization of $261.29 million, a P/E ratio of 20.47 and a beta of 0.86. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $9.76 and a 200-day moving average price of $9.79.

AudioCodes Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a half year 25 dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 28th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 14th. This represents a yield of 350.0%. AudioCodes's payout ratio is currently 88.89%.

About AudioCodes

AudioCodes Ltd. provides advanced communications software, products, and productivity solutions for the digital workplace worldwide. The company offers solutions, products, and services for unified communications, contact centers, hosted business services, Voice.AI, and service provider businesses. Its products include session border controllers, life cycle management solutions, VoIP network routing solutions, media gateways and servers, multi-service business routers, IP phones solutions, and value-added applications, as well as professional services.