The Timken Company (NYSE:TKR) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

The Timken Company (NYSE:TKR) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,790,000 shares, a growth of 17.0% from the August 31st total of 1,530,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 476,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.8 days. Approximately 2.8% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Timken Stock Performance

Shares of TKR stock traded down $0.06 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $84.91. The stock had a trading volume of 32,107 shares, compared to its average volume of 474,034. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $82.31 and its 200 day moving average is $84.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.98 billion, a PE ratio of 16.18, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.44. Timken has a twelve month low of $65.71 and a twelve month high of $94.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 2.95 and a quick ratio of 1.64.

Timken (NYSE:TKR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The industrial products company reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.60 by $0.03. Timken had a net margin of 7.52% and a return on equity of 16.36%. The company had revenue of $1.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.18 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.01 EPS. Timken’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Timken will post 6.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Timken Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 20th were paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.60%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 20th. Timken’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.90%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

TKR has been the subject of several recent research reports. Raymond James began coverage on Timken in a research note on Friday, June 28th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on shares of Timken from $94.00 to $87.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $103.00 price objective on shares of Timken in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $89.18.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Richard G. Kyle sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.46, for a total transaction of $2,413,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 244,485 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,671,263.10. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 8.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Timken

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Timken in the 1st quarter worth $26,000. Livelsberger Financial Advisory acquired a new stake in Timken in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Versant Capital Management Inc purchased a new stake in Timken in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Timken by 1,905.6% during the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 361 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 343 shares during the period. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Timken in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $44,000. 89.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Timken

The Timken Company designs, manufactures, and sells engineered bearings and industrial motion products, and related services in the United States and internationally. The company's Engineered Bearings segment provides various bearing products, including tapered, spherical, and cylindrical roller bearings; plain bearings, metal-polymer bearings, and rod end bearings; radial, angular, and precision ball bearings; thrust and specialty ball bearings; journal bearings; and housed or mounted bearings.