Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Co. (NYSE:ZWS) Short Interest Update

Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Co. (NYSE:ZWS - Get Free Report) was the target of a large increase in short interest in the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,360,000 shares, an increase of 30.9% from the March 31st total of 4,860,000 shares. Currently, 4.3% of the company's stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,150,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 5.5 days.

Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of ZWS traded up $0.94 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $35.19. 898,018 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,123,806. Zurn Elkay Water Solutions has a 12 month low of $27.74 and a 12 month high of $41.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.02. The business's 50-day moving average price is $32.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $36.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 1.81 and a current ratio of 2.91.

Zurn Elkay Water Solutions (NYSE:ZWS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The company reported $0.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $388.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $383.87 million. Zurn Elkay Water Solutions had a return on equity of 14.03% and a net margin of 10.23%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.29 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Zurn Elkay Water Solutions will post 1.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.09 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 20th. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.02%. Zurn Elkay Water Solutions's payout ratio is 36.36%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on ZWS. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on Zurn Elkay Water Solutions from $39.00 to $34.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. BNP Paribas lowered shares of Zurn Elkay Water Solutions from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $29.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of Zurn Elkay Water Solutions from $42.00 to $39.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Zurn Elkay Water Solutions from $34.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $36.43.

Insider Activity at Zurn Elkay Water Solutions

In other news, CFO David J. Pauli sold 8,390 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.47, for a total transaction of $297,593.30. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 59,410 shares in the company, valued at $2,107,272.70. This trade represents a 12.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Aimee Katz sold 8,912,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.60, for a total value of $299,460,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 15,002,819 shares of the company's stock, valued at $504,094,718.40. This represents a 37.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Zurn Elkay Water Solutions

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. DAVENPORT & Co LLC boosted its stake in Zurn Elkay Water Solutions by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 8,559 shares of the company's stock valued at $319,000 after purchasing an additional 269 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Zurn Elkay Water Solutions by 3.6% during the first quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,777 shares of the company's stock worth $322,000 after acquiring an additional 336 shares during the period. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich lifted its holdings in Zurn Elkay Water Solutions by 7.4% in the 4th quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 4,984 shares of the company's stock valued at $205,000 after acquiring an additional 344 shares during the last quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Zurn Elkay Water Solutions by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,461 shares of the company's stock valued at $312,000 after purchasing an additional 358 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Zurn Elkay Water Solutions by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 58,208 shares of the company's stock worth $2,288,000 after purchasing an additional 389 shares during the last quarter. 83.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Zurn Elkay Water Solutions

Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Corporation engages in design, procurement, manufacture, and marketing of water management solutions in the United States, Canada, and internationally. It offers water safety and control products, such as backflow preventers, fire system valves, pressure reducing valves, thermostatic mixing valves, PEX pipings, fittings, and installation tools under the Zurn and Wilkins brand names.