CPB Inc. (NYSE:CPF) Short Interest Update

CPB Inc. (NYSE:CPF) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of 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. Based on an average trading volume of 196,688 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.6 days. Currently, 2.0% of the company’s shares are sold short. Currently, 2.0% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 196,688 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.6 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CPB

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its position in shares of CPB by 535.4% in the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 915 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 771 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in CPB by 3,169.6% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,504 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 1,458 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in CPB by 30.0% in the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,630 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 376 shares during the period. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of CPB in the third quarter worth about $62,000. Finally, iSAM Funds UK Ltd bought a new stake in shares of CPB in the third quarter worth about $62,000. 88.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CPB Stock Down 0.2%

NYSE:CPF opened at $30.56 on Tuesday. CPB has a 12-month low of $23.16 and a 12-month high of $35.01. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $807.99 million, a P/E ratio of 10.69 and a beta of 0.95. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $32.49 and its 200-day simple moving average is $31.11.

CPB (NYSE:CPF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $76.29 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $75.43 million. Equities research analysts expect that CPB will post 2.75 earnings per share for the current year.

CPB Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 27th were paid a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 27th. This is a boost from CPB’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. CPB’s payout ratio is currently 40.56%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CPF has been the subject of a number of research reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of CPB in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of CPB from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $35.50.

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.