Torm Plc (NASDAQ:TRMD) Sees Significant Drop in Short Interest

Torm Plc (NASDAQ:TRMD) was the target of a large decrease in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totaling 663,615 shares, a decrease of 35.5% from the December 31st total of 1,028,304 shares. Approximately 0.7% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 638,036 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.0 days. Based on an average trading volume of 638,036 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.0 days. Approximately 0.7% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Torm Stock Performance

Torm stock opened at $24.34 on Friday. Torm has a fifty-two week low of $13.60 and a fifty-two week high of $24.95. The company has a market capitalization of $2.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.95 and a beta of 0.04. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $21.32 and a two-hundred day moving average of $21.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 2.07 and a current ratio of 2.37.

Torm (NASDAQ:TRMD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.17. Torm had a return on equity of 13.03% and a net margin of 21.37%.The business had revenue of $342.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $258.49 million. On average, analysts anticipate that Torm will post 6.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Torm Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 20th were given a $0.62 dividend. This is a boost from Torm’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 10.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 20th. Torm’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.54%.

Institutional Trading of Torm

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quarry LP purchased a new position in shares of Torm during the 3rd quarter worth $35,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC acquired a new position in Torm in the second quarter valued at $46,000. Wexford Capital LP purchased a new position in Torm during the third quarter worth about $120,000. Weaver Consulting Group acquired a new stake in Torm in the 2nd quarter worth about $167,000. Finally, Kovack Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Torm in the 2nd quarter valued at about $174,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.89% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Fearnley Fonds upgraded Torm from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Torm in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $23.00.

About Torm

Torm A/S (NASDAQ: TRMD) is an international shipping company specializing in the transportation of refined petroleum products. The firm owns and operates a modern fleet of product tankers, including both Handysize and MR vessels, which are designed to carry a broad range of clean petroleum cargoes such as gasoline, jet fuel and diesel. Torm’s core business revolves around voyage and time-charter contracts with major oil companies, trading houses and other energy sector clients around the world.

The company’s fleet is deployed on global trade routes, with particular focus on major refining and consumption regions in Europe, North America and Asia.