Ingles Markets, Incorporated (NASDAQ:IMKTA) Short Interest Up 7.6% in January

Ingles Markets, Incorporated (NASDAQ:IMKTA) saw a large growth in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 727,200 shares, a growth of 7.6% from the December 31st total of 675,600 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 140,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 5.2 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ingles Markets

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ingles Markets by 413.9% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 406 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 327 shares during the period. CWM LLC increased its stake in Ingles Markets by 75.5% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 760 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 327 shares in the last quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ingles Markets during the fourth quarter worth $96,000. Caprock Group LLC acquired a new position in Ingles Markets during the third quarter worth $203,000. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors acquired a new stake in Ingles Markets in the third quarter valued at $206,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.54% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Ingles Markets from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 30th.

Ingles Markets Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ IMKTA opened at $66.09 on Tuesday. Ingles Markets has a 52-week low of $59.73 and a 52-week high of $82.77. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $67.11 and a 200-day moving average of $69.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.26 billion, a PE ratio of 11.91 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a quick ratio of 1.45, a current ratio of 2.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

Ingles Markets (NASDAQ:IMKTA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, December 27th. The company reported ($0.08) EPS for the quarter. Ingles Markets had a return on equity of 6.90% and a net margin of 1.87%.

Ingles Markets Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 9th were given a $0.165 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. This represents a $0.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.00%. Ingles Markets’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 11.89%.

Ingles Markets Company Profile

Ingles Markets, Incorporated, together with its subsidiaries, operates a chain of supermarkets in the southeast United States. It offers food products, including grocery, meat and dairy products, produce, frozen foods, and other perishables; and non-food products, which include fuel centers, pharmacies, health and beauty care products, and general merchandise, as well as private label items.