UFP Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFPI) Short Interest Update

UFP Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFPI) saw a significant growth in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 1,120,000 shares, a growth of 46.0% from the February 13th total of 767,000 shares. Approximately 1.9% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 344,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.3 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On UFP Industries

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Putney Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in UFP Industries during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of UFP Industries by 1,683.3% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 535 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 505 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its holdings in shares of UFP Industries by 357.8% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 531 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 415 shares during the period. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda acquired a new stake in UFP Industries in the 4th quarter valued at about $61,000. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. grew its holdings in UFP Industries by 39.8% during the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 615 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $69,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the period. 81.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

UFP Industries Stock Performance

Shares of UFPI opened at $107.23 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $112.33 and a 200 day simple moving average of $121.62. The company has a current ratio of 4.88, a quick ratio of 3.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. UFP Industries has a 12 month low of $102.35 and a 12 month high of $141.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.84 and a beta of 1.52.

UFP Industries (NASDAQ:UFPI) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 17th. The construction company reported $1.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.24 by ($0.04). UFP Industries had a net margin of 6.23% and a return on equity of 13.24%. The company had revenue of $1.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.43 billion. Research analysts forecast that UFP Industries will post 7.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UFP Industries Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.31%. This is a boost from UFP Industries’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. UFP Industries’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on UFPI. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $135.00 price objective on shares of UFP Industries in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. StockNews.com lowered shares of UFP Industries from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, UFP Industries has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $143.00.

UFP Industries Company Profile

UFP Industries, Inc, through its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and markets wood and non-wood composites, and other materials in North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. It operates through Retail, Packaging, and Construction segments. The Retail segment offers treated lumber products, including decking, fencing, lattice, and other products; pressure-treated and fire-retardant products used primarily for outdoor decking environments; and lawn and garden products, consisting of wood and vinyl fencing options, garden beds and planters, pergolas, picnic tables, and other landscaping products.