Short Interest in CPB Inc. (NYSE:CPF) Rises By 28.3%

CPB Inc. (NYSE:CPF) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 517,936 shares, a growth of 28.3% from the February 12th total of 403,763 shares. Approximately 2.0% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 196,688 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.6 days. Based on an average daily volume of 196,688 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.6 days. Approximately 2.0% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Institutional Trading of CPB

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC grew its position in CPB by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 9,023 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $281,000 after purchasing an additional 369 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in shares of CPB by 30.0% during the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,630 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $51,000 after buying an additional 376 shares during the period. Summit Global Investments boosted its stake in shares of CPB by 2.5% during the second quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 18,885 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $529,000 after buying an additional 458 shares during the period. WINTON GROUP Ltd grew its holdings in shares of CPB by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd now owns 44,388 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,383,000 after buying an additional 472 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Twin Lakes Capital Management LLC increased its position in CPB by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Twin Lakes Capital Management LLC now owns 184,244 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,590,000 after acquiring an additional 513 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.42% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on CPF shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of CPB in a report on Monday, December 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of CPB from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $35.50.

CPB Stock Performance

Shares of CPB stock traded down $0.23 on Friday, hitting $30.63. The stock had a trading volume of 204,462 shares, compared to its average volume of 171,406. The stock has a market cap of $809.88 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.56 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. CPB has a 52-week low of $23.16 and a 52-week high of $35.01. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $32.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $31.12.

CPB (NYSE:CPF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.12. CPB had a return on equity of 13.64% and a net margin of 21.17%.The firm had revenue of $76.29 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $75.43 million. On average, research analysts anticipate that CPB will post 2.75 EPS for the current year.

CPB Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 27th will be given a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. This is a boost from CPB’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 27th. CPB’s payout ratio is 40.56%.

CPB Company Profile

Charoen Pokphand Foods Public Company Limited (NYSE: CPF) is a Thailand‐based integrated agro‐industrial and food conglomerate. Headquartered in Bangkok, the company is a subsidiary of the Charoen Pokphand Group and has grown into one of the world’s leading producers of livestock feed, meat and seafood products. CPF’s businesses span animal feed milling, animal breeding and hatchery operations, meat and seafood processing, and the distribution of fresh, frozen and value‐added food products.

CPF’s product portfolio includes poultry, swine and aquaculture feed; fresh and frozen chicken and pork; shrimp and other seafood; as well as ready‐to‐eat and ready‐to‐cook food items.