Magic Software Enterprises Ltd. (NASDAQ:MGIC) Short Interest Up 113.3% in March

Magic Software Enterprises Ltd. (NASDAQ:MGIC - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 192,000 shares, a growth of 113.3% from the February 28th total of 90,000 shares. Approximately 1.0% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 69,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.8 days.

Magic Software Enterprises Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MGIC traded up $0.11 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $13.10. 16,807 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 56,470. The stock has a market cap of $642.95 million, a PE ratio of 18.71 and a beta of 1.11. The business's fifty day moving average is $12.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $12.10. Magic Software Enterprises has a one year low of $9.51 and a one year high of $14.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

Magic Software Enterprises (NASDAQ:MGIC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 11th. The software maker reported $0.24 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.25 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $142.58 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $137.00 million. Magic Software Enterprises had a net margin of 6.49% and a return on equity of 15.42%. As a group, analysts predict that Magic Software Enterprises will post 0.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Magic Software Enterprises Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.327 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 4.6%. This is a boost from Magic Software Enterprises's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 22nd. Magic Software Enterprises's dividend payout ratio is 86.67%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Magic Software Enterprises from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. William Blair downgraded Magic Software Enterprises from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on Magic Software Enterprises from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 13th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its position in Magic Software Enterprises by 100.0% during the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 4,000 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in shares of Magic Software Enterprises by 77.4% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 93,166 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $1,101,000 after buying an additional 40,642 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Magic Software Enterprises by 4,274.4% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 5,818 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $69,000 after acquiring an additional 5,685 shares during the last quarter. Truist Financial Corp purchased a new position in Magic Software Enterprises in the fourth quarter worth about $189,000. Finally, Truffle Hound Capital LLC bought a new stake in Magic Software Enterprises during the fourth quarter worth approximately $5,173,000. 24.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Magic Software Enterprises

Magic Software Enterprises Ltd. provides proprietary application development, vertical software solutions, business process integration, information technologies (IT) outsourcing software services, and cloud-based services in Israel and internationally. Its Software Services segment develops, markets, sells, and supports application platform, software applications, and business and process integration solutions and related services.