Short Interest in SEI Investments Company (NASDAQ:SEIC) Increases By 23.5%

SEI Investments Company (NASDAQ:SEIC) was the target of a large increase in short interest in March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 2,022,624 shares, an increase of 23.5% from the February 26th total of 1,638,172 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 999,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.0 days. Approximately 1.9% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

SEI Investments Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SEIC traded up $1.49 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $77.21. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 870,378 shares, compared to its average volume of 782,193. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $81.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $82.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 3.29 and a quick ratio of 3.20. SEI Investments has a fifty-two week low of $64.66 and a fifty-two week high of $93.96. The company has a market capitalization of $9.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.71 and a beta of 0.96.

SEI Investments (NASDAQ:SEIC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The asset manager reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $607.93 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $596.97 million. SEI Investments had a return on equity of 30.26% and a net margin of 31.14%.The firm’s revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.19 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that SEI Investments will post 4.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of SEI Investments in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of SEI Investments from $97.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $117.00 price target on shares of SEI Investments in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of SEI Investments from $115.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on shares of SEI Investments in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $115.00 target price for the company. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $109.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other SEI Investments news, CEO Ryan Hicke sold 80,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.36, for a total value of $6,988,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 197,164 shares in the company, valued at $17,224,247.04. This represents a 28.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Alfred P. West, Jr. sold 55,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.23, for a total value of $4,412,650.00. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 6,883,230 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $552,241,542.90. This represents a 0.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 146,447 shares of company stock worth $12,318,659 in the last 90 days. 14.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of SEI Investments

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its holdings in SEI Investments by 185.4% during the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 180,716 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $14,895,000 after buying an additional 117,400 shares in the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. increased its stake in shares of SEI Investments by 25.1% in the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 150,008 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $12,304,000 after buying an additional 30,122 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of SEI Investments in the 4th quarter valued at $277,000. SHP Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of SEI Investments during the fourth quarter worth $372,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in shares of SEI Investments during the fourth quarter valued at $102,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.59% of the company’s stock.

About SEI Investments

SEI Investments Company is a global provider of asset management, investment processing, and investment operations solutions. The firm offers a range of services designed to help financial institutions, private banks, wealth managers and family offices streamline back-office functions and enhance front-office capabilities. SEI’s technology platforms support various stages of the investment lifecycle, including trade execution, performance reporting, risk analytics and client communications.

The company’s core offerings include outsourced fund administration, custody and trust services, managed account solutions, and wealth management technology.