Dole PLC (NYSE:DOLE) Short Interest Up 58.8% in March

Dole PLC (NYSE:DOLE) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 1,780,132 shares, a growth of 58.8% from the February 26th total of 1,120,877 shares. Approximately 1.9% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 680,318 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.6 days.

Institutional Trading of Dole

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Signaturefd LLC boosted its holdings in Dole by 190.2% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,680 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,101 shares in the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in Dole by 120.8% in the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,835 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 1,004 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in Dole in the fourth quarter valued at $53,000. Westfuller Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Dole in the third quarter valued at $49,000. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its stake in Dole by 269.0% during the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 3,716 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 2,709 shares in the last quarter.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports on DOLE shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded Dole from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 7th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Dole in a report on Monday, December 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $16.00.

Dole Stock Performance

DOLE stock traded up $0.16 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $14.71. 646,175 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 779,744. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.40 billion, a PE ratio of 27.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.64. The business has a 50-day moving average of $15.34 and a two-hundred day moving average of $14.45. Dole has a 52 week low of $12.52 and a 52 week high of $16.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54.

Dole (NYSE:DOLE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.12 by $0.02. Dole had a return on equity of 7.81% and a net margin of 0.56%.The business had revenue of $2.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.32 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.16 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Dole will post 1.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Dole Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 18th will be paid a $0.085 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 18th. This represents a $0.34 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Dole’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.15%.

About Dole

Dole plc is a global producer, marketer and distributor of fresh fruits and vegetables. The company’s product range includes bananas, pineapples, berries, grapes, salads and a variety of other fresh and packaged produce, sold under the Dole brand and through private-label arrangements. Dole’s operations span the full fresh-produce value chain, from farming and sourcing to packing, ripening, cold‑chain logistics and wholesale and retail distribution, supporting both retail grocery and foodservice customers.

The company traces its commercial heritage to the early 20th century Hawaiian pineapple business founded by James Dole and has evolved through subsequent corporate restructurings and combinations.