Short Interest in Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. (NYSE:ARCO) Expands By 8.5%

Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. (NYSE:ARCO) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in August. As of August 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,410,000 shares, an increase of 8.5% from the July 31st total of 5,910,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,430,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.5 days. Approximately 5.2% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Arcos Dorados Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ARCO opened at $8.80 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $9.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $10.25. Arcos Dorados has a twelve month low of $8.59 and a twelve month high of $13.20. The company has a market capitalization of $1.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52.

Arcos Dorados (NYSE:ARCO) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 14th. The restaurant operator reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.13. Arcos Dorados had a net margin of 3.80% and a return on equity of 36.55%. The company had revenue of $1.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.06 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.14 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Arcos Dorados will post 0.77 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded Arcos Dorados from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 24th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Arcos Dorados

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ARCO. Perpetual Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Arcos Dorados in the 1st quarter worth approximately $49,647,000. Absolute Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. acquired a new stake in Arcos Dorados in the first quarter worth $22,586,000. Fourth Sail Capital LP bought a new stake in Arcos Dorados in the second quarter valued at $16,463,000. Aubrey Capital Management Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Arcos Dorados during the first quarter valued at $13,661,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP bought a new position in shares of Arcos Dorados during the second quarter worth about $7,128,000. 55.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Arcos Dorados Company Profile

Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc operates as a franchisee of McDonald's restaurants. It has the exclusive right to own, operate, and grant franchises of McDonald's restaurants in 20 countries and territories in Latin America and the Caribbean, including Argentina, Aruba, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Curacao, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, the U.S.