Farmer Bros. Co. (NASDAQ:FARM) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Farmer Bros. Co. (NASDAQ:FARM) was the target of a large growth in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 74,700 shares, a growth of 36.8% from the December 15th total of 54,600 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 85,300 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.9 days. Currently, 0.4% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com assumed coverage on Farmer Bros. in a research note on Thursday. They set a “hold” rating for the company.

Institutional Trading of Farmer Bros.

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. grew its position in Farmer Bros. by 58.3% in the third quarter. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 19,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 7,000 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its stake in shares of Farmer Bros. by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 559,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,499,000 after buying an additional 7,600 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Farmer Bros. by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 209,288 shares of the company’s stock valued at $414,000 after acquiring an additional 11,390 shares in the last quarter. PFG Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Farmer Bros. in the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Farmer Bros. by 4.9% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 367,919 shares of the company’s stock worth $986,000 after acquiring an additional 17,327 shares in the last quarter. 64.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Farmer Bros. Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FARM opened at $1.69 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $1.93 and a 200 day moving average price of $2.22. Farmer Bros. has a 1-year low of $1.60 and a 1-year high of $4.04. The firm has a market cap of $36.08 million, a PE ratio of -4.69 and a beta of 1.80. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57.

Farmer Bros. (NASDAQ:FARM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported ($0.24) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.23) by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $85.07 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $84.80 million. Farmer Bros. had a negative return on equity of 35.41% and a negative net margin of 2.20%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.06) earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Farmer Bros. will post -0.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Farmer Bros. Company Profile

Farmer Bros. Co engages in the roasting, wholesale, equipment servicing, and distribution of coffee, tea, and other allied products in the United States. The company offers roast and ground coffee; frozen liquid coffee; flavoured and unflavoured iced and hot teas; culinary products, including spices, pancake and biscuit mixes, gravy and sauce mixes, soup bases, dressings, and syrups and sauces, as well as coffee filters, cups, sugar, and creamers; and other beverages comprising cappuccino, cocoa, granitas, and other blender-based beverages and concentrated and ready-to-drink cold brew and iced coffee.