Federated Hermes, Inc. (NYSE:FHI) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Federated Hermes, Inc. (NYSE:FHI - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 2,680,000 shares, a growth of 26.4% from the February 13th total of 2,120,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 726,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.7 days. Currently, 3.5% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Federated Hermes Price Performance

NYSE FHI traded down $0.24 on Friday, reaching $39.54. The company had a trading volume of 6,798,898 shares, compared to its average volume of 674,942. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.21 billion, a PE ratio of 12.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.10. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $38.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $39.07. The company has a quick ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 2.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Federated Hermes has a 12 month low of $31.24 and a 12 month high of $43.92.

Federated Hermes (NYSE:FHI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.08. Federated Hermes had a return on equity of 30.31% and a net margin of 16.44%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Federated Hermes will post 4.04 earnings per share for the current year.

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Federated Hermes Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.14%. Federated Hermes's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.87%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Saker Anwar Nusseibeh sold 5,546 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.81, for a total transaction of $215,240.26. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 179,096 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,950,715.76. The trade was a 3.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 3.70% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Federated Hermes

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. FMR LLC lifted its position in Federated Hermes by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,919,888 shares of the company's stock worth $243,367,000 after buying an additional 253,553 shares during the last quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Federated Hermes by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,888,263 shares of the company's stock worth $77,626,000 after acquiring an additional 63,664 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Federated Hermes by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,282,252 shares of the company's stock worth $52,731,000 after acquiring an additional 32,070 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its stake in shares of Federated Hermes by 53.8% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,276,898 shares of the company's stock worth $52,493,000 after purchasing an additional 446,683 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Federated Hermes by 19.0% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 915,045 shares of the company's stock worth $37,618,000 after purchasing an additional 145,878 shares during the period. 75.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on FHI shares. StockNews.com downgraded Federated Hermes from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on shares of Federated Hermes from $42.00 to $39.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Evercore ISI set a $44.00 price target on shares of Federated Hermes in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Federated Hermes from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a "hold" rating and set a $43.00 target price (down previously from $45.00) on shares of Federated Hermes in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Federated Hermes has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $42.17.

About Federated Hermes

Federated Hermes, Inc is a publicly owned investment manager. Through its subsidiaries, the firm provides its services to individuals, including high net worth individuals, banking or thrift institutions, investment companies, pension and profit sharing plans, pooled investment vehicles, charitable organizations, state or municipal government entities, and registered investment advisors.