Short Interest in Superior Group of Companies, Inc. (NASDAQ:SGC) Declines By 29.8%

Key Points

• Superior Group of Companies experienced a significant drop in short interest, with a 29.8% decrease from 407,500 shares to 286,100 shares as of August 31st, representing approximately 2.7% of the company's shares.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.14, which represents a 5.0% yield, although its dividend payout ratio stands at a high 109.80%.
• Several analysts have upgraded the stock's rating to "buy" and increased the target price to $16.00, with three analysts currently rating it as a "buy."

Superior Group of Companies, Inc. (NASDAQ:SGC - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest in August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totaling 286,100 shares, a drop of 29.8% from the August 15th total of 407,500 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 46,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 6.2 days. Currently, 2.7% of the company's shares are sold short. Currently, 2.7% of the company's shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 46,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 6.2 days.

Insider Activity at Superior Group of Companies

In other news, Director Andrew D. Demott, Jr. sold 12,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.46, for a total value of $137,520.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 202,126 shares in the company, valued at $2,316,363.96. This trade represents a 5.60% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 26.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Superior Group of Companies

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of Superior Group of Companies by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 116,011 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $1,918,000 after purchasing an additional 7,875 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its position in shares of Superior Group of Companies by 344.4% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 12,340 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $204,000 after purchasing an additional 9,563 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in shares of Superior Group of Companies by 17.9% during the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 12,888 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $213,000 after purchasing an additional 1,960 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG grew its position in shares of Superior Group of Companies by 57.8% during the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 18,112 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $299,000 after purchasing an additional 6,635 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth purchased a new position in shares of Superior Group of Companies during the 4th quarter valued at $235,000. Institutional investors own 33.75% of the company's stock.

Superior Group of Companies Stock Performance

SGC stock traded down $0.70 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $11.26. 149,914 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 39,163. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $11.65 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $10.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a current ratio of 2.71. Superior Group of Companies has a 52 week low of $9.11 and a 52 week high of $18.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $179.82 million, a PE ratio of 22.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 1.41.

Superior Group of Companies (NASDAQ:SGC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The textile maker reported $0.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.05 by $0.05. Superior Group of Companies had a net margin of 1.44% and a return on equity of 4.22%. The business had revenue of $144.05 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $133.32 million. Superior Group of Companies has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Superior Group of Companies will post 0.77 EPS for the current year.

Superior Group of Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 18th were issued a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 18th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.0%. Superior Group of Companies's payout ratio is presently 109.80%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SGC has been the subject of several research reports. Noble Financial initiated coverage on Superior Group of Companies in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $16.00 target price for the company. Barrington Research raised their target price on Superior Group of Companies from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 19th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Superior Group of Companies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Superior Group of Companies has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $17.33.

About Superior Group of Companies

Superior Group of Companies, Inc manufactures and sells apparel and accessories in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Branded Products, Healthcare Apparel, and Contact Centers. The Branded Products segment produces and sells customized merchandising solutions, promotional products, and branded uniform to chain retailer, food service, entertainment, technology, transportation, and other industries under BAMKO and HPI brands.