The Shyft Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SHYF – Get Rating) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 1,040,000 shares, a growth of 18.5% from the February 13th total of 877,900 shares. Approximately 3.3% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 228,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.6 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on SHYF. TheStreet upgraded shares of The Shyft Group from a "c+" rating to a "b-" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 26th. BTIG Research initiated coverage on shares of The Shyft Group in a research report on Thursday, January 19th. They set a "buy" rating and a $40.00 target price on the stock. DA Davidson cut their target price on shares of The Shyft Group from $38.00 to $32.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 24th. Finally, Raymond James cut their target price on shares of The Shyft Group from $40.00 to $30.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 24th.

The Shyft Group Trading Down 6.1 %

The Shyft Group stock traded down $1.58 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $24.53. 266,365 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 247,929. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The Shyft Group has a 12 month low of $17.66 and a 12 month high of $41.63. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $29.66 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $25.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $863.95 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.82 and a beta of 1.97.

The Shyft Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 16th. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.82%. The Shyft Group's payout ratio is 19.42%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other The Shyft Group news, insider Stephen K. Guillaume sold 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.58, for a total transaction of $106,320.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 67,792 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,801,911.36. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Stephen K. Guillaume sold 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.58, for a total transaction of $106,320.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 67,792 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,801,911.36. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Stephen K. Guillaume sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.83, for a total transaction of $53,660.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 73,792 shares in the company, valued at $1,979,839.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.26% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Voya Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of The Shyft Group by 25.3% in the 4th quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 415,606 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,332,000 after acquiring an additional 83,806 shares in the last quarter. III Capital Management grew its position in The Shyft Group by 10.1% in the 4th quarter. III Capital Management now owns 138,210 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,435,000 after purchasing an additional 12,642 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its position in The Shyft Group by 20.9% in the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 2,062,338 shares of the company's stock valued at $51,270,000 after purchasing an additional 356,411 shares during the period. State of Wyoming grew its position in The Shyft Group by 21.4% in the 4th quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 3,640 shares of the company's stock valued at $90,000 after purchasing an additional 642 shares during the period. Finally, CI Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in The Shyft Group in the 4th quarter valued at $1,003,000. Institutional investors own 80.17% of the company's stock.

The Shyft Group Company Profile

(Get Rating)

The Shyft Group, Inc engages in vehicle manufacturing and assembly for the commercial and retail vehicle industries as well as for the emergency response and recreational vehicle markets. It operates through the Fleet Vehicles and Services, and Specialty Vehicles segments. The Fleet Vehicles and Services segment manufactures commercial vehicles used in the e-commerce/last mile/parcel delivery, beverage and grocery delivery, mobile retail, and trades and construction industries.

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