Short Interest in Embraer S.A. (NYSE:ERJ) Grows By 42.5%

Embraer S.A. (NYSE:ERJ) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 4,460,000 shares, an increase of 42.5% from the August 31st total of 3,130,000 shares. Approximately 2.4% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 1,690,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.6 days.

Embraer Stock Down 3.3 %

NYSE ERJ traded down $1.21 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $35.72. 1,579,175 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,675,978. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 1.50. Embraer has a one year low of $12.48 and a one year high of $37.30. The company’s 50-day moving average is $32.61 and its two-hundred day moving average is $28.98. The company has a market capitalization of $6.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.81 and a beta of 1.69.

Embraer (NYSE:ERJ) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The aerospace company reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.20. Embraer had a return on equity of 5.94% and a net margin of 6.76%. The business had revenue of $1.49 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.44 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.32 earnings per share. Embraer’s quarterly revenue was up 15.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Embraer will post 1.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Embraer

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Driehaus Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Embraer by 102.5% in the 2nd quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC now owns 1,439,579 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $37,141,000 after buying an additional 728,592 shares during the last quarter. Nicholas Investment Partners LP increased its holdings in Embraer by 424.7% in the second quarter. Nicholas Investment Partners LP now owns 526,494 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $13,584,000 after purchasing an additional 426,153 shares during the period. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Embraer during the 1st quarter worth about $10,754,000. Jennison Associates LLC bought a new stake in shares of Embraer in the 1st quarter valued at about $9,818,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP raised its position in shares of Embraer by 76.5% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 712,112 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $18,372,000 after acquiring an additional 308,729 shares during the last quarter. 34.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ERJ has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. TD Cowen raised shares of Embraer from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $26.00 to $41.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. UBS Group upped their price target on Embraer from $28.50 to $29.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 3rd. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 price objective on shares of Embraer in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Embraer from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $32.50.

Embraer Company Profile

Embraer SA designs, develops, manufactures, and sells aircraft and systems in North America, Latin America, the Asia Pacific, Brazil, Europe, and internationally. The company operates through Commercial Aviation; Defense & Security; Executive Aviation; Services & Support; and Other segments. The Commercial Aviation segment designs, develops, manufactures, and sells commercial jets, as well as leases aircraft.