KBR, Inc. (NYSE:KBR) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

KBR, Inc. (NYSE:KBR - Get Free Report) saw a significant increase in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,650,000 shares, an increase of 28.6% from the November 30th total of 2,060,000 shares. Currently, 2.0% of the company's shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 1,490,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.8 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KBR has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. KeyCorp increased their price target on KBR from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of KBR from $76.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. DA Davidson restated a "buy" rating and set a $84.00 price target on shares of KBR in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. TD Cowen lowered KBR from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $72.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Friday, September 6th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on KBR from $77.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, KBR currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $81.14.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On KBR

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Pier 88 Investment Partners LLC increased its position in shares of KBR by 25.9% during the third quarter. Pier 88 Investment Partners LLC now owns 50,710 shares of the construction company's stock worth $3,303,000 after purchasing an additional 10,420 shares in the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP acquired a new position in KBR during the third quarter worth approximately $771,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in KBR by 14.5% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,416,531 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $167,876,000 after buying an additional 305,889 shares during the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of KBR during the third quarter worth approximately $1,928,000. Finally, Versor Investments LP acquired a new position in shares of KBR in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,954,000. 97.02% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

KBR Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of KBR traded down $0.59 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $57.05. The stock had a trading volume of 611,682 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,212,038. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $62.63 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $64.46. The company has a market cap of $7.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.97, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 0.84. KBR has a 1-year low of $51.60 and a 1-year high of $72.60.

KBR (NYSE:KBR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The construction company reported $0.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.84. The business had revenue of $1.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.95 billion. KBR had a return on equity of 28.87% and a net margin of 4.35%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.75 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that KBR will post 3.27 earnings per share for the current year.

KBR Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.05%. KBR's dividend payout ratio is currently 25.21%.

About KBR

KBR, Inc provides scientific, technology, and engineering solutions to governments and commercial customers worldwide. It operates through Government Solutions and Sustainable Technology Solutions segments. The Government Solutions segment offers life-cycle support solutions to defense, intelligence, space, aviation, and other programs and missions for military and other government agencies in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia.