Liquidity Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:LQDT) Short Interest Update

Liquidity Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:LQDT) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,030,000 shares, an increase of 17.4% from the January 15th total of 877,700 shares. Currently, 4.5% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 302,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.4 days.

Liquidity Services Price Performance

NASDAQ LQDT traded up $0.77 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $36.48. 332,765 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 281,738. Liquidity Services has a 52-week low of $16.58 and a 52-week high of $39.72. The company has a market capitalization of $1.12 billion, a PE ratio of 48.64 and a beta of 1.36. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $33.29 and its 200-day moving average is $26.51.

Liquidity Services (NASDAQ:LQDT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The business services provider reported $0.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.06. Liquidity Services had a net margin of 6.37% and a return on equity of 20.94%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on LQDT. Craig Hallum upped their price target on shares of Liquidity Services from $28.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Liquidity Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $40.00 price objective on shares of Liquidity Services in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Jaime Mateus-Tique sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.22, for a total transaction of $1,661,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 103,660 shares in the company, valued at $3,443,585.20. This represents a 32.54 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Jorge Celaya sold 16,540 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.10, for a total transaction of $564,014.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 33,608 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,146,032.80. This trade represents a 32.98 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 157,388 shares of company stock worth $5,263,991. Company insiders own 28.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Liquidity Services

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Liquidity Services in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of Liquidity Services in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $47,000. nVerses Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Liquidity Services in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $48,000. Aquatic Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Liquidity Services by 257.6% in the 4th quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC now owns 1,788 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 1,288 shares during the last quarter. Finally, R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Liquidity Services in the 4th quarter worth approximately $66,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.15% of the company’s stock.

Liquidity Services Company Profile

Liquidity Services, Inc provides e-commerce marketplaces, self-directed auction listing tools, and value-added services in the United States and internationally. The company operates through four segments: GovDeals, Retail Supply Chain Group (RSCG), Capital Assets Group (CAG), and Machinio. Its marketplaces include liquidation.com that enable corporations to sell surplus and salvage consumer goods and retail capital assets; GovDeals marketplace, which provides self-directed service solutions in which sellers list their own assets that enables local and state government entities, and commercial businesses located in the United States and Canada to sell surplus and salvage assets; and AllSurplus, a centralized marketplace that connects global buyer base with assets from across the network of marketplaces in a single destination.