Apogee Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:APOG) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

Apogee Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:APOG) saw a large decrease in short interest in January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 762,000 shares, a decrease of 17.9% from the December 31st total of 927,700 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 186,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.1 days. Approximately 3.5% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Apogee Enterprises Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ APOG traded down $0.92 during trading on Friday, reaching $51.60. The stock had a trading volume of 75,252 shares, compared to its average volume of 328,008. Apogee Enterprises has a one year low of $49.58 and a one year high of $87.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.63. The stock has a market cap of $1.13 billion, a PE ratio of 11.51 and a beta of 1.04. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $69.03 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $70.02.

Apogee Enterprises (NASDAQ:APOG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 7th. The industrial products company reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $341.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $332.27 million. Apogee Enterprises had a return on equity of 23.14% and a net margin of 7.14%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.23 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Apogee Enterprises will post 4.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apogee Enterprises Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 28th will be given a $0.26 dividend. This is a positive change from Apogee Enterprises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 28th. Apogee Enterprises’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.21%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Apogee Enterprises by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 117,770 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $8,410,000 after purchasing an additional 4,373 shares during the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Apogee Enterprises during the 4th quarter valued at about $225,000. KBC Group NV increased its holdings in shares of Apogee Enterprises by 46.7% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,282 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $92,000 after acquiring an additional 408 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC acquired a new position in shares of Apogee Enterprises during the 4th quarter valued at about $824,000. Finally, Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Apogee Enterprises during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. 94.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Sidoti raised Apogee Enterprises from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. StockNews.com lowered Apogee Enterprises from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. DA Davidson lowered their price target on Apogee Enterprises from $75.00 to $62.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Singular Research upgraded Apogee Enterprises to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th.

About Apogee Enterprises

Apogee Enterprises, Inc provides architectural products and services for enclosing buildings, and glass and acrylic products used for preservation, protection, and enhanced viewing in the United States, Canada, and Brazil. The company operates in four segments: Architectural Framing Systems, Architectural Glass, Architectural Services, and Large-Scale Optical (LSO).