Qifu Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:QFIN) Short Interest Down 17.0% in March

Qifu Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:QFIN) saw a significant decrease in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,750,000 shares, a decrease of 17.0% from the March 15th total of 4,520,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,140,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.3 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Qifu Technology from $23.54 to $23.80 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Nomura started coverage on shares of Qifu Technology in a report on Monday, December 18th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Qifu Technology

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its position in Qifu Technology by 83.9% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,426 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 1,107 shares during the last quarter. Employees Retirement System of Texas purchased a new stake in Qifu Technology in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $51,000. Clear Street Markets LLC purchased a new stake in Qifu Technology in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $58,000. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Qifu Technology during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $84,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its position in shares of Qifu Technology by 164.5% during the 3rd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 5,203 shares of the company’s stock valued at $67,000 after buying an additional 3,236 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.81% of the company’s stock.

Qifu Technology Stock Performance

Shares of Qifu Technology stock opened at $18.54 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.99 billion, a PE ratio of 5.07, a P/E/G ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $16.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $15.77. Qifu Technology has a one year low of $13.12 and a one year high of $20.61.

Qifu Technology (NASDAQ:QFIN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 12th. The company reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.96. Qifu Technology had a net margin of 26.29% and a return on equity of 20.44%. The firm had revenue of $633.18 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $597.09 million. On average, equities analysts predict that Qifu Technology will post 4.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Qifu Technology Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Investors of record on Monday, April 15th will be given a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 12th. This represents a yield of 5.7%. This is a positive change from Qifu Technology’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.50. Qifu Technology’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.78%.

Qifu Technology Company Profile

Qifu Technology, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates credit-tech platform under the 360 Jietiao brand in the People's Republic of China. It provides credit-driven services that matches borrowers with financial institutions to conduct customer acquisition, initial and credit screening, advanced risk assessment, credit assessment, fund matching, and other post-facilitation services; and platform services, including loan facilitation and post-facilitation services to financial institution partners under intelligence credit engine, referral services, and risk management software-as-a-service.