Short Interest in Clearwater Paper Co. (NYSE:CLW) Drops By 60.6%

Clearwater Paper Co. (NYSE:CLW) saw a large decline in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 389,800 shares, a decline of 60.6% from the December 31st total of 988,200 shares. Approximately 2.4% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 464,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.8 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CLW has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $37.00 price target on shares of Clearwater Paper in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. StockNews.com lowered Clearwater Paper from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th.

Institutional Trading of Clearwater Paper

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Clearwater Paper by 45.2% during the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,887,015 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $53,855,000 after purchasing an additional 587,043 shares during the last quarter. Peregrine Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Clearwater Paper during the fourth quarter valued at $4,328,000. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC lifted its holdings in shares of Clearwater Paper by 14.7% during the fourth quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 141,130 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $4,201,000 after purchasing an additional 18,139 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Clearwater Paper by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 111,947 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,333,000 after purchasing an additional 5,428 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Clearwater Paper by 10.9% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 111,002 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $5,380,000 after purchasing an additional 10,875 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.98% of the company’s stock.

Clearwater Paper Price Performance

Shares of Clearwater Paper stock traded down $0.20 during trading on Friday, hitting $32.17. The stock had a trading volume of 207,201 shares, compared to its average volume of 313,630. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.72, a current ratio of 1.78 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The firm has a market cap of $533.12 million, a P/E ratio of 37.41 and a beta of 0.32. The business has a fifty day moving average of $28.84 and a two-hundred day moving average of $31.77. Clearwater Paper has a fifty-two week low of $23.97 and a fifty-two week high of $57.13.

Clearwater Paper announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Monday, November 4th that permits the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the basic materials company to reacquire up to 23.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

About Clearwater Paper

Clearwater Paper Corporation manufactures and supplies bleached paperboards, and consumer and parent roll tissues in the United States and internationally. It operates through Pulp and Paperboard, and Consumer Products segments. The Pulp and Paperboard segment manufactures and markets bleached paperboard; Solid Bleached Sulfate paperboard that is used to produce folding cartons, liquid packaging, cups and plates, blister and carded packaging, and top sheet and commercial printing items; and hardwood and softwood pulp, as well as offers services that include custom sheeting, slitting, and cutting.