T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. Raises Stake in The Shyft Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SHYF)

T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. raised its position in The Shyft Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SHYF - Free Report) by 60.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,240,017 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,216,701 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 9.39% of The Shyft Group worth $38,038,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of The Shyft Group by 257.9% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 45,666 shares of the company's stock valued at $573,000 after buying an additional 32,906 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of The Shyft Group by 1.3% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 773,150 shares of the company's stock worth $9,705,000 after purchasing an additional 9,588 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of The Shyft Group by 76.7% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 54,727 shares of the company's stock worth $669,000 after acquiring an additional 23,761 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in The Shyft Group by 49.9% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 176,601 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,216,000 after buying an additional 58,816 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of The Shyft Group by 24.3% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 18,274 shares of the company's stock worth $215,000 after purchasing an additional 3,575 shares in the last quarter. 85.84% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

The Shyft Group Trading Up 3.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ SHYF traded up $0.34 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $9.08. The company's stock had a trading volume of 82,564 shares, compared to its average volume of 290,862. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $8.63 and its 200-day simple moving average is $11.19. The Shyft Group, Inc. has a one year low of $6.82 and a one year high of $17.56. The stock has a market cap of $317.04 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -100.88 and a beta of 1.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 1.82 and a quick ratio of 1.16.

The Shyft Group (NASDAQ:SHYF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.14 by ($0.09). The Shyft Group had a positive return on equity of 2.75% and a negative net margin of 0.36%. The company had revenue of $201.43 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $211.90 million. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Shyft Group, Inc. will post 0.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Shyft Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.05 per share. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. The Shyft Group's payout ratio is currently 2,000.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, DA Davidson upgraded The Shyft Group from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $15.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 15th.

The Shyft Group Profile

The Shyft Group, Inc engages in the manufacture and assembly of specialty vehicles for the commercial and recreational vehicle industries in the United States and internationally. It operates in two segments, Fleet Vehicles and Services, and Specialty Vehicles. The Fleet Vehicles and Services segment offers commercial vehicles used in the e-commerce/last mile/parcel delivery, beverage and grocery delivery, laundry and linen, mobile retail, and trades and construction industries.