Torm Plc (NASDAQ:TRMD) Short Interest Up 225.1% in May

Torm Plc (NASDAQ:TRMD) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of May. As of May 29th, there was short interest totaling 1,868,749 shares, an increase of 225.1% from the May 14th total of 574,838 shares. Currently, 1.8% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 1,008,919 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.9 days.

Torm Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ TRMD traded down $0.23 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $28.95. 624,367 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 807,949. Torm has a 52 week low of $16.36 and a 52 week high of $35.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.95 billion, a PE ratio of 8.51 and a beta of 0.08. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $30.56 and its 200 day moving average price is $26.17.

Torm (NASDAQ:TRMD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 13th. The company reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by ($0.15). The company had revenue of $402.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $297.43 million. Torm had a return on equity of 15.81% and a net margin of 24.45%.

Torm Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 28th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.7%. Torm’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 60.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

TRMD has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Pareto Securities downgraded shares of Torm from a “hold” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Torm in a report on Friday, April 17th. Evercore set a $35.00 price target on shares of Torm in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Torm from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Torm has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $35.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Jacob Balslev Meldgaard sold 170,133 shares of Torm stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.30, for a total value of $5,495,295.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 348,411 shares in the company, valued at $11,253,675.30. This trade represents a 32.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Torm

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Torm in the third quarter valued at $35,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC bought a new stake in Torm in the second quarter valued at $46,000. Optiver Holding B.V. bought a new stake in Torm in the first quarter valued at $67,000. Wexford Capital LP bought a new stake in Torm in the third quarter valued at $120,000. Finally, Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Torm in the fourth quarter worth about $121,000. Institutional investors own 73.89% of the company’s stock.

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.