Avangrid, Inc. (NYSE:AGR) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Avangrid, Inc. (NYSE:AGR) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 1,420,000 shares, a growth of 5.2% from the November 15th total of 1,350,000 shares. Approximately 2.0% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 637,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.2 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Avangrid in a report on Monday. They set a “hold” rating on the stock.

Avangrid Price Performance

Shares of AGR opened at $35.63 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $13.79 billion, a PE ratio of 12.24, a PEG ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $35.78 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $35.68. Avangrid has a 12-month low of $29.71 and a 12-month high of $37.70.

Avangrid (NYSE:AGR) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The utilities provider reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.33 by $0.22. Avangrid had a net margin of 12.89% and a return on equity of 5.37%. The business had revenue of $2.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.04 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.27 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Avangrid will post 2.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Avangrid Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.94%. Avangrid’s dividend payout ratio is 60.48%.

Institutional Trading of Avangrid

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AGR. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Avangrid by 19.6% during the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,100 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $223,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Hennessy Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Avangrid by 3.1% in the second quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 86,300 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,066,000 after buying an additional 2,600 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in Avangrid by 26.9% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 256,980 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $9,130,000 after buying an additional 54,469 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its position in Avangrid by 743,566.7% during the second quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 22,310 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $793,000 after acquiring an additional 22,307 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC grew its holdings in Avangrid by 2.6% during the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 16,011 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $569,000 after acquiring an additional 399 shares during the period. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Avangrid Company Profile

Avangrid, Inc, an energy services holding company, engages in the regulated energy transmission and distribution, and renewable energy generation businesses in the United States. The company operates through Networks and Renewables segments. It is involved in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity; and distribution, transportation, and sale of natural gas.