Farmer Brothers Company (NASDAQ:FARM) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Farmer Brothers Company (NASDAQ:FARM) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 77,691 shares, a growth of 165.1% from the February 26th total of 29,304 shares. Currently, 0.4% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 645,221 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.1 days.

Farmer Brothers Trading Down 1.2%

Shares of FARM stock traded down $0.02 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $1.25. 17,330 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 222,310. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $1.47 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $1.59. The firm has a market cap of $27.05 million, a P/E ratio of -1.45 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 1.27. Farmer Brothers has a fifty-two week low of $1.21 and a fifty-two week high of $2.50.

Farmer Brothers (NASDAQ:FARM) last issued its earnings results on Friday, February 13th. The company reported ($0.22) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.14) by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $88.92 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $90.47 million. Farmer Brothers had a negative return on equity of 30.38% and a negative net margin of 5.51%. Equities analysts anticipate that Farmer Brothers will post -0.37 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on FARM shares. Zacks Research raised shares of Farmer Brothers from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Farmer Brothers in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Roth Mkm lowered their price objective on Farmer Brothers from $3.50 to $3.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $2.75.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL increased its holdings in shares of Farmer Brothers by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 787,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,149,000 after acquiring an additional 7,500 shares in the last quarter. Teton Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Farmer Brothers in the 3rd quarter worth $537,000. Gabelli Funds LLC grew its position in Farmer Brothers by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 272,500 shares of the company’s stock valued at $373,000 after purchasing an additional 6,000 shares during the period. Sanders Morris Harris LLC increased its stake in Farmer Brothers by 43.5% during the 3rd quarter. Sanders Morris Harris LLC now owns 218,238 shares of the company’s stock valued at $373,000 after purchasing an additional 66,200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in Farmer Brothers by 253.7% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 68,833 shares of the company’s stock valued at $153,000 after purchasing an additional 49,374 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 64.48% of the company’s stock.

About Farmer Brothers

Farmer Brothers Company (NASDAQ: FARM) is a specialty coffee roaster and distributor that serves the foodservice, hospitality and office coffee markets across the United States. The company produces and delivers coffee, tea, single-serve products and beverage equipment, supporting its customers with supply chain solutions, equipment maintenance and barista training services. Its operations are organized to serve commercial accounts ranging from national restaurant chains and convenience stores to independent coffee shops and corporate offices.

Founded in 1912 in Texas, Farmer Brothers has grown from a regional roaster into a national supplier with a network of manufacturing and distribution facilities.