Tetra Tech, Inc. (NASDAQ:TTEK) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Key Points

• Tetra Tech, Inc. experienced a significant increase in short interest of 211.3% in July, with a total of 9,090,000 shares shorted as of July 15th.
• Analyst ratings for Tetra Tech have improved, with upgrades from "hold" to "buy" and target price increases, yielding an average price target of $41.67 and a current average rating of "Moderate Buy."
• The company recently reported a quarterly earnings beat with an EPS of $0.43, slightly above the consensus estimate of $0.37, and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.065 per share.

Tetra Tech, Inc. (NASDAQ:TTEK - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totaling 9,090,000 shares, agrowthof211.3% from the June 30th total of 2,920,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,040,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.5 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,040,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.5 days.

Institutional Trading of Tetra Tech

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Chilton Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Tetra Tech during the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Baillie Gifford & Co. bought a new stake in shares of Tetra Tech during the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division acquired a new position in shares of Tetra Tech in the second quarter valued at $32,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its position in Tetra Tech by 54.5% in the second quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 987 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 348 shares during the period. Finally, SVB Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Tetra Tech during the first quarter worth $36,000. 93.89% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Tetra Tech Stock Down 1.0%

TTEK traded down $0.37 during trading on Friday, reaching $36.87. 1,692,438 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,465,305. The stock has a market cap of $9.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.09 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 1.10. Tetra Tech has a fifty-two week low of $27.27 and a fifty-two week high of $51.20. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $36.40 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $33.48.

Tetra Tech (NASDAQ:TTEK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.43 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.37 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $1.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.15 billion. Tetra Tech had a return on equity of 24.70% and a net margin of 3.94%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.59 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Tetra Tech will post 1.37 EPS for the current year.

Tetra Tech Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a $0.065 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $0.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Tetra Tech's dividend payout ratio is 32.50%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on TTEK shares. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Tetra Tech from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Wall Street Zen raised Tetra Tech from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price target on shares of Tetra Tech from $41.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $41.67.

Tetra Tech Company Profile

Tetra Tech, Inc provides consulting and engineering services in the United States and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Government Services Group (GSG) and Commercial/International Services Group (CIG). The GSG segment offers early data collection and monitoring, data analysis and information management, science and engineering applied research, engineering design, project management, and operations and maintenance services; and climate change and energy management consulting, as well as greenhouse gas inventory assessment, certification, reduction, and management services.