KNOT Offshore Partners LP (NYSE:KNOP) Short Interest Down 37.9% in December

KNOT Offshore Partners LP (NYSE:KNOP - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 235,000 shares, a decrease of 37.9% from the November 30th total of 378,400 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 80,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.9 days. Currently, 1.0% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Institutional Trading of KNOT Offshore Partners

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Marshall Wace LLP grew its position in shares of KNOT Offshore Partners by 297.5% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 116,623 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $1,023,000 after purchasing an additional 87,283 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its position in shares of KNOT Offshore Partners by 3.2% in the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,311,017 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $11,498,000 after buying an additional 41,100 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in shares of KNOT Offshore Partners by 7.7% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 442,332 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $3,030,000 after buying an additional 31,792 shares during the period. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in KNOT Offshore Partners during the second quarter worth approximately $229,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.82% of the company's stock.

KNOT Offshore Partners Price Performance

Shares of KNOP stock traded down $0.04 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $5.37. 78,786 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 90,118. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $5.92 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $6.74. The firm has a market cap of $184.17 million, a PE ratio of -12.49 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 0.44 and a quick ratio of 0.42. KNOT Offshore Partners has a 1-year low of $4.94 and a 1-year high of $9.11.

KNOT Offshore Partners Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 28th were given a dividend of $0.026 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, October 28th. This represents a $0.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.94%. KNOT Offshore Partners's payout ratio is -23.26%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded shares of KNOT Offshore Partners from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th.

About KNOT Offshore Partners

KNOT Offshore Partners LP acquires, owns, and operates shuttle tankers under long-term charters in the North Sea and Brazil. The company provides loading, transportation, and discharge of crude oil under time charters and bareboat charters. The company was founded in 2013 and is headquartered in Aberdeen, the United Kingdom.