Johnson Outdoors Inc. (NASDAQ:JOUT) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Johnson Outdoors Inc. (NASDAQ:JOUT – Get Rating) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 178,100 shares, a growth of 8.4% from the February 13th total of 164,300 shares. Approximately 2.2% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 51,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.5 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com began coverage on Johnson Outdoors in a research report on Thursday. They set a “hold” rating on the stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director John M. Fahey, Jr. sold 4,239 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.94, for a total transaction of $271,041.66. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 14,921 shares in the company, valued at approximately $954,048.74. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 27.53% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Johnson Outdoors

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in JOUT. Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its holdings in Johnson Outdoors by 1,207.9% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 497 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 459 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in Johnson Outdoors in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. acquired a new stake in Johnson Outdoors in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its position in Johnson Outdoors by 15,650.0% in the 3rd quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 945 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 939 shares during the period. Finally, Denali Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Johnson Outdoors by 44.4% during the 4th quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 1,300 shares of the company’s stock valued at $86,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the period. 60.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Johnson Outdoors Price Performance

Johnson Outdoors stock opened at $59.82 on Friday. Johnson Outdoors has a 1-year low of $46.30 and a 1-year high of $84.54. The company has a market cap of $612.56 million, a PE ratio of 15.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 0.87. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $65.38 and its 200 day moving average price is $59.69.

Johnson Outdoors (NASDAQ:JOUT – Get Rating) last posted its earnings results on Friday, February 3rd. The company reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57. Johnson Outdoors had a return on equity of 8.14% and a net margin of 5.14%. The company had revenue of $178.34 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $167.55 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.07 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Johnson Outdoors will post 4.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson Outdoors Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 12th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.07%. Johnson Outdoors’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.04%.

Johnson Outdoors Company Profile

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Johnson Outdoors, Inc engages in the manufacturing and marketing of seasonal, outdoor recreation products. It operates through the following segments: Fishing, Camping, Watercraft Recreation, Diving, and Other. The Fishing segment includes the brands Minn Kota electric motors for quiet trolling or primary propulsion, marine battery chargers, and shallow water anchors, Humminbird sonar and GPS equipment for fishfinding, navigation and marine cartography, and Cannon downriggers for controlled-depth fishing.