Short Interest in Donaldson Company, Inc. (NYSE:DCI) Rises By 6.5%

Donaldson Company, Inc. (NYSE:DCI - Get Free Report) saw a significant growth in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,320,000 shares, a growth of 6.5% from the November 30th total of 1,240,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 602,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.2 days. Approximately 1.1% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Donaldson Price Performance

Shares of DCI stock traded down $0.06 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $67.29. 496,570 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 514,086. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 1.85. The firm has a market cap of $8.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.04. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $73.58 and its 200-day simple moving average is $72.90. Donaldson has a twelve month low of $61.79 and a twelve month high of $78.95.

Donaldson (NYSE:DCI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, December 3rd. The industrial products company reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.01. Donaldson had a return on equity of 29.07% and a net margin of 11.56%. The firm had revenue of $900.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $888.88 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.75 earnings per share. Donaldson's revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Donaldson will post 3.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Donaldson Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th were issued a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.60%. Donaldson's dividend payout ratio is currently 31.40%.

Insider Activity

In other Donaldson news, President Thomas R. Scalf sold 4,295 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.33, for a total value of $314,952.35. Following the sale, the president now owns 30,834 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,261,057.22. This trade represents a 12.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Willard D. Oberton sold 2,700 shares of Donaldson stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.37, for a total value of $198,099.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 27,983 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,053,112.71. This trade represents a 8.80 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 9,495 shares of company stock valued at $695,951. 2.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Donaldson

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of DCI. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of Donaldson by 2.1% during the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 33,697 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,411,000 after purchasing an additional 681 shares during the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC lifted its stake in Donaldson by 46.2% during the second quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 13,674 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $979,000 after buying an additional 4,320 shares in the last quarter. Algert Global LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Donaldson by 1,554.0% in the second quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 146,346 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $10,473,000 after buying an additional 137,498 shares during the period. Jensen Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Donaldson by 18.1% in the third quarter. Jensen Investment Management Inc. now owns 67,040 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $4,941,000 after acquiring an additional 10,280 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Donaldson by 7.3% during the third quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 28,877 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,128,000 after acquiring an additional 1,974 shares during the period. 82.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Donaldson from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Donaldson from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, September 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Donaldson from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $74.00.

Donaldson Company Profile

Donaldson Company, Inc manufactures and sells filtration systems and replacement parts worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Mobile Solutions, Industrial Solutions, and Life Sciences. Its Mobile Solutions segment provides replacement filters for air and liquid filtration applications, such as air filtration systems; liquid filtration systems for fuel, lube, and hydraulic applications; exhaust and emissions systems and sensors; indicators; and monitoring systems.