Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:CALM) Short Interest Up 11.4% in September

Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:CALM) saw a significant growth in short interest in September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,050,000 shares, a growth of 11.4% from the August 31st total of 1,840,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 497,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.1 days. Currently, 5.1% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Insider Transactions at Cal-Maine Foods

In related news, Director James E. Poole sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.65, for a total value of $105,975.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 10,170 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $718,510.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, Director James E. Poole sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.65, for a total transaction of $105,975.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,170 shares in the company, valued at $718,510.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Michael Todd Walters sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.20, for a total value of $210,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 5,310 shares in the company, valued at approximately $372,762. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 6,000 shares of company stock valued at $422,970 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 13.51% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Garner Asset Management Corp grew its position in Cal-Maine Foods by 0.9% during the second quarter. Garner Asset Management Corp now owns 20,252 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,238,000 after buying an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. Regal Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Cal-Maine Foods by 3.9% during the 2nd quarter. Regal Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,404 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $330,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System increased its position in shares of Cal-Maine Foods by 2.0% in the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 11,765 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $719,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares during the period. AlphaMark Advisors LLC raised its stake in Cal-Maine Foods by 4.7% in the second quarter. AlphaMark Advisors LLC now owns 5,554 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $339,000 after purchasing an additional 249 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Cal-Maine Foods by 73.8% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 676 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 287 shares during the period. 84.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Cal-Maine Foods Stock Performance

CALM traded up $1.40 on Friday, hitting $74.65. 455,381 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 600,863. The company has a market cap of $3.66 billion, a PE ratio of 13.24 and a beta of -0.10. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $70.76 and its 200-day moving average is $63.80. Cal-Maine Foods has a 12 month low of $42.25 and a 12 month high of $75.64.

Cal-Maine Foods (NASDAQ:CALM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The basic materials company reported $2.32 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.41 by ($0.09). Cal-Maine Foods had a return on equity of 16.46% and a net margin of 11.94%. The business had revenue of $640.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $652.32 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.27 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis.

Cal-Maine Foods Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 5th were given a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 5th. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.13%. Cal-Maine Foods’s payout ratio is presently 54.61%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Cal-Maine Foods from $47.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th.

Cal-Maine Foods Company Profile

Cal-Maine Foods, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, produces, grades, packages, markets, and distributes shell eggs. The company offers specialty shell eggs, such as nutritionally enhanced, cage free, organic, free-range, pasture-raised, and brown eggs under the Egg-Land's Best, Land O' Lakes, Farmhouse Eggs, Sunups, Sunny Meadow, and 4Grain brand names.