ABM Industries Incorporated (NYSE:ABM) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

ABM Industries Incorporated (NYSE:ABM - Get Free Report) was the target of a large decline in short interest in January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,630,000 shares, a decline of 6.3% from the January 15th total of 1,740,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 337,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.8 days. Approximately 2.7% of the company's stock are short sold.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of ABM Industries from $55.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th.

ABM Industries Stock Performance

NYSE ABM traded down $0.35 during trading on Friday, hitting $52.69. 372,220 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 296,130. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.49, a PEG ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.16. ABM Industries has a 12-month low of $39.83 and a 12-month high of $59.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a current ratio of 1.33. The business has a 50 day moving average of $52.44 and a 200-day moving average of $53.56.

ABM Industries (NYSE:ABM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, December 18th. The business services provider reported $0.90 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.87 by $0.03. ABM Industries had a net margin of 0.97% and a return on equity of 12.48%. The business had revenue of $2.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.08 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.01 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that ABM Industries will post 3.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ABM Industries Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd were given a $0.265 dividend. This represents a $1.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.01%. This is a boost from ABM Industries's previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 2nd. ABM Industries's dividend payout ratio is 83.47%.

Insider Buying and Selling at ABM Industries

In other ABM Industries news, COO Rene Jacobsen sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.84, for a total transaction of $528,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 87,808 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,639,774.72. The trade was a 10.22 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Dean A. Chin sold 4,281 shares of ABM Industries stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.36, for a total transaction of $224,153.16. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 18,681 shares in the company, valued at $978,137.16. This represents a 18.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.04% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Savant Capital LLC increased its position in shares of ABM Industries by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 11,707 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $599,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. Adirondack Trust Co. grew its position in ABM Industries by 28.6% during the fourth quarter. Adirondack Trust Co. now owns 900 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Naples Global Advisors LLC grew its position in ABM Industries by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Naples Global Advisors LLC now owns 11,038 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $565,000 after acquiring an additional 253 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its position in ABM Industries by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 6,274 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $321,000 after acquiring an additional 289 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Summit Investment Advisors Inc. grew its position in ABM Industries by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 6,615 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $339,000 after acquiring an additional 329 shares during the last quarter. 91.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About ABM Industries

ABM Industries Incorporated, through its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of integrated facility, infrastructure, and mobility solutions in the United States and internationally. It operates through Business & Industry, Manufacturing & Distribution, Education, Aviation, and Technical Solutions segments.