Hillman Solutions Corp (NASDAQ:HLMN) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Hillman Solutions Corp (NASDAQ:HLMN) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,990,000 shares, an increase of 9.1% from the November 30th total of 2,740,000 shares. Approximately 1.5% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 809,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.7 days.

Insider Activity at Hillman Solutions

In other news, insider Scott Ride sold 72,523 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.66, for a total transaction of $773,095.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 70,369 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $750,133.54. The trade was a 50.75 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Philip Woodlief sold 19,779 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.18, for a total value of $221,129.22. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 55,811 shares in the company, valued at $623,966.98. This trade represents a 26.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 5.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Hillman Solutions

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Hillman Solutions by 231.7% in the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 3,317 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 2,317 shares during the period. Quarry LP bought a new position in Hillman Solutions during the third quarter worth $43,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new stake in Hillman Solutions during the second quarter valued at $57,000. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. boosted its position in Hillman Solutions by 103.9% during the second quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 8,779 shares of the company’s stock valued at $78,000 after acquiring an additional 4,473 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Hillman Solutions during the 3rd quarter worth about $132,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.11% of the company’s stock.

Hillman Solutions Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:HLMN opened at $9.74 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 2.32. Hillman Solutions has a 52 week low of $8.43 and a 52 week high of $12.08. The firm has a market cap of $1.91 billion, a PE ratio of 243.56 and a beta of 1.65. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $10.78 and its 200-day moving average is $10.06.

Hillman Solutions (NASDAQ:HLMN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The company reported $0.16 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.16. The firm had revenue of $393.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $389.50 million. Hillman Solutions had a return on equity of 8.81% and a net margin of 0.57%. The business’s revenue was down 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.11 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Hillman Solutions will post 0.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on HLMN shares. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Hillman Solutions from $12.00 to $14.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Hillman Solutions from $10.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Benchmark raised their price objective on Hillman Solutions from $13.00 to $16.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on Hillman Solutions from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hillman Solutions has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $14.20.

Hillman Solutions Company Profile

Founded in 1964 and headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, Hillman is a leading North American provider of complete hardware solutions, delivered with industry best customer service to over 40,000 locations. Hillman designs innovative product and merchandising solutions for complex categories that deliver an outstanding customer experience to home improvement centers, mass merchants, national and regional hardware stores, pet supply stores, and OEM & Industrial customers.