Short Interest in Alexander & Baldwin Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:ALEX) Increases By 53.5%

Alexander & Baldwin Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:ALEX) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totaling 1,252,766 shares, an increase of 53.5% from the December 15th total of 816,384 shares. Approximately 1.7% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 838,256 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.5 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 838,256 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.5 days. Approximately 1.7% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Institutional Trading of Alexander & Baldwin

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Evelyn Partners Asset Management Ltd bought a new position in Alexander & Baldwin in the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp bought a new position in shares of Alexander & Baldwin in the first quarter worth about $41,000. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Alexander & Baldwin by 76.7% during the 2nd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,462 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 1,069 shares during the last quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Alexander & Baldwin during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Finally, CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC bought a new stake in Alexander & Baldwin during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $49,000. 91.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Alexander & Baldwin Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE ALEX opened at $20.85 on Friday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $18.59 and a 200 day simple moving average of $18.12. Alexander & Baldwin has a 52 week low of $15.07 and a 52 week high of $21.03. The stock has a market cap of $1.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.65 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a current ratio of 0.38.

Alexander & Baldwin (NYSE:ALEX) last posted its earnings results on Friday, October 31st. The financial services provider reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.28 by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $50.25 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $50.69 million. Alexander & Baldwin had a net margin of 33.62% and a return on equity of 7.29%. On average, research analysts predict that Alexander & Baldwin will post 1.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alexander & Baldwin Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 19th were issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.7%. This is a boost from Alexander & Baldwin’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 19th. Alexander & Baldwin’s dividend payout ratio is 138.61%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on ALEX. Piper Sandler lowered shares of Alexander & Baldwin from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $21.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Alexander & Baldwin in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Janney Montgomery Scott cut Alexander & Baldwin from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $21.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Alliance Global Partners downgraded Alexander & Baldwin from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, Industrial Alliance Securities set a $20.85 price objective on Alexander & Baldwin in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $20.95.

Alexander & Baldwin Company Profile

Founded in 1870 by Samuel T. Alexander and Henry P. Baldwin as a sugarcane plantation on Maui, Alexander & Baldwin, Inc (NYSE: ALEX) today operates as a Hawai‘i-focused real estate investment trust headquartered in Honolulu. The company transitioned from its agricultural origins into a diversified real estate owner, operator and developer, completing its conversion to a REIT structure in late 2019 to align its corporate governance with its core property portfolio.

Alexander & Baldwin’s commercial real estate arm spans office, retail, industrial and hospitality properties across the four major Hawaiian Islands.