Euroseas Ltd. (NASDAQ:ESEA) Shares Shorted: Short Interest Down 43.6% in September

Euroseas Ltd. (NASDAQ:ESEA) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest in the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totaling 31,339 shares, a decline of 43.6% from the September 15th total of 55,584 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 48,837 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.6 days. Approximately 1.0% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Insider Activity at Euroseas

In other news, insider Symeon Pariaros sold 950 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.00, for a total transaction of $75,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 1,900 shares in the company, valued at approximately $150,100. This represents a 33.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 55.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Euroseas

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its position in shares of Euroseas by 4.2% during the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 100,765 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $6,736,000 after acquiring an additional 4,087 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC bought a new stake in shares of Euroseas during the 1st quarter worth about $1,591,000. Navellier & Associates Inc. increased its position in Euroseas by 94.8% during the 2nd quarter. Navellier & Associates Inc. now owns 15,562 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $1,033,000 after buying an additional 7,575 shares during the period. WINTON GROUP Ltd increased its stake in Euroseas by 33.1% during the 2nd quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd now owns 8,036 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $533,000 after acquiring an additional 1,998 shares during the period. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new position in shares of Euroseas in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $423,000. Institutional investors own 6.27% of the company’s stock.

Euroseas Price Performance

ESEA stock traded down $1.50 during trading on Thursday, hitting $67.45. 36,154 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 58,044. The stock has a market cap of $476.20 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.62. Euroseas has a one year low of $51.00 and a one year high of $79.67. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $74.00 and a 200 day simple moving average of $71.14. The company has a current ratio of 5.46, a quick ratio of 5.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

Euroseas (NASDAQ:ESEA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The shipping company reported $4.70 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.09 by $0.61. Euroseas had a return on equity of 26.58% and a net margin of 59.98%. The company had revenue of $56.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $55.98 million. Equities analysts expect that Euroseas will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Euroseas Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 9th were issued a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 9th. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.7%. Euroseas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 16.47%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Freedom Broker assumed coverage on shares of Euroseas in a report on Tuesday, September 29th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $93.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Euroseas from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Euroseas from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $93.00.

About Euroseas

Euroseas Ltd. (NASDAQ: ESEA) is a shipping company that owns and operates containerships engaged in the transportation of containerized cargo. Its vessels generally serve the feeder and intermediate segments of the container shipping market, connecting smaller or regional ports with major international trade routes.

The company’s fleet is employed primarily through time charters, voyage charters and pool arrangements, depending on market conditions and vessel characteristics. Euroseas serves customers involved in global commerce across a range of international and regional trading areas, with operations managed from Athens, Greece, and a corporate domicile in the Marshall Islands.

Euroseas was established in 2005 by the Pittas family, which has a long history in commercial shipping.