Short Interest in Alliance Resource Partners, L.P. (NASDAQ:ARLP) Declines By 19.0%

Alliance Resource Partners, L.P. (NASDAQ:ARLP) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest during the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,860,000 shares, a drop of 19.0% from the February 28th total of 3,530,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 361,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 7.9 days. Currently, 3.2% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Alliance Resource Partners Stock Up 2.3 %

ARLP stock opened at $27.28 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $26.64 and a 200-day simple moving average of $26.26. The company has a market capitalization of $3.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.88 and a beta of 1.09. Alliance Resource Partners has a twelve month low of $20.05 and a twelve month high of $30.56.

Alliance Resource Partners (NASDAQ:ARLP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 3rd. The energy company reported $0.22 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.60 by ($0.38). Alliance Resource Partners had a net margin of 14.74% and a return on equity of 19.09%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Alliance Resource Partners will post 2.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alliance Resource Partners Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 10.26%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. Alliance Resource Partners’s payout ratio is 101.45%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on ARLP. StockNews.com lowered Alliance Resource Partners from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $29.00 price objective (up previously from $27.00) on shares of Alliance Resource Partners in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Singular Research downgraded shares of Alliance Resource Partners from a “strong-buy” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Timothy J. Whelan sold 50,000 shares of Alliance Resource Partners stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.13, for a total value of $1,256,500.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 93,850 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,358,450.50. The trade was a 34.76 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 16.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Progeny 3 Inc. lifted its position in Alliance Resource Partners by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Progeny 3 Inc. now owns 2,942,211 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $77,351,000 after purchasing an additional 38,030 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in shares of Alliance Resource Partners by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,815,453 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $47,728,000 after buying an additional 44,636 shares during the last quarter. Recurrent Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Alliance Resource Partners by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Recurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,151,070 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $30,262,000 after buying an additional 5,925 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Alliance Resource Partners in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $14,564,000. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its position in Alliance Resource Partners by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 284,228 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $7,472,000 after acquiring an additional 13,316 shares during the period. 18.11% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Alliance Resource Partners

Alliance Resource Partners, L.P., a diversified natural resource company, produces and markets coal primarily to utilities and industrial users in the United States. The company operates through four segments: Illinois Basin Coal Operations, Appalachia Coal Operations, Oil & Gas Royalties, and Coal Royalties.