Newell Brands Inc. (NASDAQ:NWL) Short Interest Update

Newell Brands Inc. (NASDAQ:NWL) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 22,610,000 shares, a growth of 21.0% from the February 28th total of 18,680,000 shares. Approximately 5.5% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 8,340,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.7 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on NWL shares. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of Newell Brands from $9.50 to $9.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their price objective on shares of Newell Brands from $15.00 to $14.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 10th. UBS Group raised their target price on Newell Brands from $9.50 to $10.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Citigroup cut their price target on Newell Brands from $10.50 to $7.75 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Newell Brands from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Newell Brands presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $10.58.

Newell Brands Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:NWL traded up $0.04 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $6.22. 4,308,982 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,295,096. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $7.50 and its 200 day simple moving average is $8.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 0.56. Newell Brands has a 52-week low of $5.39 and a 52-week high of $11.78. The company has a market cap of $2.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -11.96, a PEG ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.88.

Newell Brands (NASDAQ:NWL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 7th. The company reported $0.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.02. Newell Brands had a negative net margin of 2.85% and a positive return on equity of 9.76%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.22 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Newell Brands will post 0.72 EPS for the current year.

Newell Brands Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $0.07 per share. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.50%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Newell Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -53.85%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Newell Brands

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in NWL. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Newell Brands during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in shares of Newell Brands during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Newell Brands by 140.1% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 7,912 shares of the company’s stock valued at $79,000 after acquiring an additional 4,617 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in Newell Brands by 24.8% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 8,376 shares of the company’s stock valued at $83,000 after purchasing an additional 1,666 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund bought a new position in Newell Brands during the fourth quarter valued at $101,000. 92.50% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Newell Brands Company Profile

Newell Brands Inc engages in the design, manufacture, sourcing, and distribution of consumer and commercial products worldwide. The company operates in three segments: Home and Commercial Solutions, Learning and Development, and Outdoor and Recreation. The Commercial Solutions segment provides commercial cleaning and maintenance solution products under the Rubbermaid, Rubbermaid Commercial Products, Mapa, and Spontex brands; closet and garage organization products; hygiene systems and material handling solutions; household products, such as kitchen appliances under the Crockpot, Mr.