Green Plains Inc. (NASDAQ:GPRE) Short Interest Update

Green Plains Inc. (NASDAQ:GPRE) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in August. As of August 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,510,000 shares, an increase of 9.8% from the July 31st total of 5,930,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,010,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 6.4 days.

Green Plains Stock Down 7.9 %

Shares of GPRE traded down $1.12 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $13.05. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,358,607 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,124,656. The business has a fifty day moving average of $15.37 and a 200 day moving average of $18.46. The company has a market cap of $843.28 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.61 and a beta of 1.58. Green Plains has a 1 year low of $12.77 and a 1 year high of $34.62. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55.

Green Plains (NASDAQ:GPRE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.38) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.03) by ($0.35). Green Plains had a negative return on equity of 4.94% and a negative net margin of 1.64%. The firm had revenue of $618.83 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $646.70 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted ($0.89) earnings per share. Green Plains’s revenue was down 27.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Green Plains will post -0.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Green Plains

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of Green Plains by 0.7% during the second quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 103,690 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,645,000 after acquiring an additional 739 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP raised its holdings in shares of Green Plains by 120.3% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 68,208 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,082,000 after acquiring an additional 37,250 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its holdings in shares of Green Plains by 11.2% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 33,342 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $529,000 after acquiring an additional 3,356 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Green Plains during the second quarter worth $41,000. Finally, Point72 Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Green Plains during the second quarter worth $29,000.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on GPRE. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $24.00 price target on shares of Green Plains in a research note on Tuesday, May 7th. Oppenheimer downgraded Green Plains from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Craig Hallum cut their price objective on Green Plains from $34.00 to $26.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. StockNews.com downgraded Green Plains from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, May 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Green Plains from $22.00 to $17.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $26.28.

Green Plains Company Profile

Green Plains Inc produces low-carbon fuels in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Ethanol Production, Agribusiness and Energy Services, and Partnership. The Ethanol Production segment produces ethanol, distillers grains, and ultra-high protein and renewable corn oil.