SoftBank Group Corp. Unsponsored ADR (OTCMKTS:SFTBY) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Key Points

• Short interest surged 48.5% in April to 6,033,708 shares for SoftBank's unsponsored ADR (about 0.1% of shares), with a days-to-cover ratio of 1.4 based on average daily volume.
• The company reported a quarterly EPS beat ($0.14 vs. $0.10) and strong profitability (net margin 48.62%, ROE 23.66%), while the stock trades around $17.92 with a market cap of $204.7B and a PE of 8.27.
• Analyst opinion is mixed — three Buys, three Holds and one Sell — producing an average rating of "Hold".

SoftBank Group Corp. Unsponsored ADR (OTCMKTS:SFTBY - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totaling 6,033,708 shares, an increase of 48.5% from the March 31st total of 4,062,290 shares. Approximately 0.1% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 4,441,282 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.4 days.

SoftBank Group Stock Down 7.4%

Shares of SFTBY opened at $17.92 on Tuesday. SoftBank Group has a 12 month low of $6.00 and a 12 month high of $22.50. The firm's 50 day moving average is $12.98 and its 200-day moving average is $14.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $204.71 billion, a PE ratio of 8.27 and a beta of 1.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

SoftBank Group (OTCMKTS:SFTBY - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The technology company reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.10 by $0.04. SoftBank Group had a net margin of 48.62% and a return on equity of 23.66%. The company had revenue of $12.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $12.44 billion. Equities research analysts forecast that SoftBank Group will post 2.78 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SFTBY has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of SoftBank Group in a report on Monday, January 5th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. BTIG Research initiated coverage on shares of SoftBank Group in a report on Monday, January 5th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. TD Cowen raised shares of SoftBank Group to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on shares of SoftBank Group in a report on Monday, March 9th. They issued an "overweight" rating on the stock. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of SoftBank Group to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold".

About SoftBank Group

SoftBank Group Corp is a Tokyo‐based multinational conglomerate holding company with a primary focus on technology, telecommunications and investment management. Founded in 1981 by Masayoshi Son, the company initially operated as a software distributor before expanding into mobile communications and internet services. Over the years, SoftBank has built a diversified portfolio that spans telecom operators, semiconductor design, cloud computing, and emerging technology ventures.

A key pillar of SoftBank's strategy is its investment arm, the SoftBank Vision Fund, which targets high‐growth technology companies around the globe.

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