Guild Holdings (NYSE:GHLD) Short Interest Up 842.1% in December

Guild Holdings (NYSE:GHLD - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 17,900 shares, an increase of 842.1% from the December 15th total of 1,900 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 12,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.4 days. Currently, 0.2% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on GHLD. Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and set a $20.00 target price on shares of Guild in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Guild from $17.00 to $15.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Guild from $14.50 to $13.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $16.50.

Guild Price Performance

Guild stock traded up $0.36 on Monday, reaching $12.80. The company's stock had a trading volume of 13,200 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,200. The business's fifty day moving average price is $13.76 and its 200 day moving average price is $14.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.06 and a current ratio of 0.06. The company has a market cap of $792.14 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.26, a PEG ratio of 0.32 and a beta of 1.00. Guild has a twelve month low of $11.21 and a twelve month high of $18.25.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Guild

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Bridges Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Guild during the second quarter worth $10,497,000. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. increased its position in Guild by 11.9% in the third quarter. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. now owns 653,957 shares of the company's stock worth $10,875,000 after purchasing an additional 69,603 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in Guild by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 269,881 shares of the company's stock worth $4,488,000 after purchasing an additional 13,668 shares during the last quarter. Castleview Partners LLC acquired a new position in Guild during the 3rd quarter valued at about $79,000. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its stake in shares of Guild by 8.2% in the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 27,700 shares of the company's stock valued at $410,000 after purchasing an additional 2,100 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 17.52% of the company's stock.

Guild Company Profile

Guild Holdings Company originates, sells, and services residential mortgage loans in the United States. It operates in two segments, Origination and Servicing. The company offers residential mortgages through retail and correspondent channels. Guild Holdings Company was incorporated in 1960 and is headquartered in San Diego, California.