Japan Tob (OTCMKTS:JAPAY) Short Interest Up 621.8% in May

Japan Tob (OTCMKTS:JAPAY) saw a large growth in short interest during the month of May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totaling 109,477 shares, a growth of 621.8% from the April 30th total of 15,167 shares. Currently, 0.0% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 132,475 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.8 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Zacks Research raised Japan Tob from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $17.00.

Japan Tob Stock Up 0.5%

Japan Tob stock opened at $19.24 on Friday. Japan Tob has a fifty-two week low of $14.02 and a fifty-two week high of $20.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.93. The company has a market capitalization of $68.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.24 and a beta of 0.28. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $18.85 and a 200-day simple moving average of $18.65.

Japan Tob (OTCMKTS:JAPAY) last posted its earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The company reported $0.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.30 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.69 billion. Equities research analysts expect that Japan Tob will post 1.08 earnings per share for the current year.

About Japan Tob

Japan Tobacco Inc (OTC: JAPAY) is a Tokyo-based multinational company primarily engaged in the manufacture and sale of tobacco products. The company’s core activities include the development, production and distribution of cigarettes and other nicotine-delivery products for domestic and international markets. Japan Tobacco also pursues business activities beyond tobacco, including pharmaceutical and processed‑food operations through subsidiary units and strategic investments.

In its tobacco operations the company serves both the Japanese market and a broad international footprint through its global operating arm, Japan Tobacco International (JTI).