Steelcase Inc. (NYSE:SCS) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Steelcase Inc. (NYSE:SCS) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,390,000 shares, an increase of 34.0% from the March 31st total of 2,530,000 shares. Currently, 4.0% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 806,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.2 days.

Insider Transactions at Steelcase

In related news, VP Robert G. Krestakos sold 4,000 shares of Steelcase stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.61, for a total transaction of $50,440.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 108,081 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,362,901.41. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 12.72% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Steelcase by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,313,399 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $104,031,000 after acquiring an additional 159,813 shares during the period. Dark Forest Capital Management LP lifted its stake in shares of Steelcase by 106.2% during the 3rd quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP now owns 74,273 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $830,000 after buying an additional 38,252 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co boosted its holdings in Steelcase by 75.6% in the 3rd quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 46,902 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $524,000 after buying an additional 20,187 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Steelcase by 6.7% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,322,643 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $25,944,000 after buying an additional 145,328 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd bought a new stake in Steelcase during the 3rd quarter valued at $4,505,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com raised shares of Steelcase from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 29th.

Steelcase Stock Performance

SCS stock traded down $0.26 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $12.03. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 437,710 shares, compared to its average volume of 789,259. Steelcase has a 1 year low of $6.39 and a 1 year high of $14.54. The stock has a market cap of $1.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.07, a PEG ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.35. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $12.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $12.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

Steelcase (NYSE:SCS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 20th. The business services provider reported $0.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.21 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $775.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $780.25 million. Steelcase had a net margin of 2.57% and a return on equity of 12.87%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.19 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Steelcase will post 0.92 EPS for the current year.

Steelcase Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 3rd were paid a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 2nd. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.33%. Steelcase’s payout ratio is presently 58.82%.

Steelcase Company Profile

Steelcase Inc provides a portfolio of furniture and architectural products and services in the United States and internationally. It operates through Americas and International segments. The company's furniture portfolio includes furniture systems, seating, storage, fixed and height-adjustable desks, benches, and tables, as well as complementary products, such as work accessories, lighting, mobile power, and screens.