Short Interest in Dawson Geophysical Company (NASDAQ:DWSN) Rises By 326.5%

Key Points

• Short interest in Dawson Geophysical jumped 326.5% in July, rising to 305,633 shares as of July 15 from 71,662 shares at the end of June. Despite the increase, short interest still represents only 1.0% of shares outstanding, with a days-to-cover ratio of 0.7.
• The stock was up 4.6% and opened at $4.98, near its 50-day moving average of $4.80. Dawson Geophysical has a market cap of about $154.6 million and has traded between $1.26 and $7.85 over the past year.
• Recent quarterly results beat expectations, with earnings of $0.25 per share versus an expected loss of $0.29 and revenue of $36.7 million versus estimates of $27.2 million. Analysts currently have a consensus rating of Hold on the stock.

Dawson Geophysical Company (NASDAQ:DWSN - Get Free Report) saw a large growth in short interest in the month of July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totaling 305,633 shares, a growth of 326.5% from the June 30th total of 71,662 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 458,444 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.7 days. Currently, 1.0% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Dawson Geophysical Stock Up 4.6%

DWSN opened at $4.98 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01. The company has a market cap of $154.63 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.20 and a beta of -0.17. Dawson Geophysical has a one year low of $1.26 and a one year high of $7.85. The business's fifty day moving average is $4.80 and its two-hundred day moving average is $3.55.

Dawson Geophysical (NASDAQ:DWSN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 14th. The oil and gas company reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.29) by $0.54. The business had revenue of $36.70 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $27.20 million. Dawson Geophysical had a net margin of 4.91% and a return on equity of 26.74%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Wall Street Zen raised Dawson Geophysical from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday, April 5th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Dawson Geophysical in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold".

Institutional Trading of Dawson Geophysical

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of DWSN. Sanders Morris Harris LLC acquired a new stake in Dawson Geophysical during the second quarter valued at approximately $119,000. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp acquired a new position in Dawson Geophysical during the first quarter valued at $40,000. Cetera Investment Advisers acquired a new stake in Dawson Geophysical during the 1st quarter worth about $41,000. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Dawson Geophysical during the first quarter worth approximately $119,000. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Dawson Geophysical during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 7.86% of the company's stock.

About Dawson Geophysical

Dawson Geophysical Company provides land-based seismic data acquisition services to the oil and gas industry. Through its subsidiaries, the company specializes in the design, deployment and operation of seismic crews that collect high-fidelity subsurface data. Its services support exploration and development programs by delivering two-dimensional (2D), three-dimensional (3D) and time-lapse (4D) seismic surveys that enable clients to make informed drilling and reservoir management decisions.

The company's fleet includes vibratory and impulsive seismic sources, high-capacity source trucks, geophone sensor arrays and digital recording systems.

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