Short Interest in J. Sainsbury PLC (OTCMKTS:JSAIY) Increases By 32.5%

J. Sainsbury PLC (OTCMKTS:JSAIY) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest during the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 172,544 shares, an increase of 32.5% from the February 26th total of 130,267 shares. Currently, 0.0% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 64,267 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.7 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised J. Sainsbury to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Citigroup upgraded J. Sainsbury to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Zacks Research raised J. Sainsbury from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 13th. Kepler Capital Markets raised J. Sainsbury from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of J. Sainsbury in a report on Sunday, December 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

J. Sainsbury Stock Performance

OTCMKTS:JSAIY opened at $17.79 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $18.59 and its 200-day moving average is $18.10. J. Sainsbury has a 52-week low of $11.68 and a 52-week high of $19.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.62.

J. Sainsbury Company Profile

J. Sainsbury PLC, trading in the United States under the ticker OTCMKTS:JSAIY, is one of the United Kingdom’s leading grocery retailers. Through its primary Sainsbury’s supermarket banner and smaller convenience formats under the Sainsbury’s Local name, the company offers a wide range of food and household products. In addition to its core retail operations, Sainsbury’s extends into general merchandise and clothing under the TU brand, serving both in-store and through its established e-commerce platform.

Founded in 1869 by John James Sainsbury and his wife Mary Ann, Sainsbury’s has grown from a single dairy shop in London’s Drury Lane to a nationwide retail network.