Nomad Foods Limited (NYSE:NOMD) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

Nomad Foods Limited (NYSE:NOMD - Get Free Report) was the target of a large drop in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,350,000 shares, a drop of 25.0% from the November 30th total of 1,800,000 shares. Approximately 1.0% of the company's stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 667,900 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.0 days.

Nomad Foods Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE:NOMD traded down $0.23 during trading on Friday, reaching $16.56. The company's stock had a trading volume of 374,241 shares, compared to its average volume of 622,276. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.70 billion, a PE ratio of 12.45 and a beta of 0.78. Nomad Foods has a 12 month low of $15.99 and a 12 month high of $20.05. The company has a current ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $17.36 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $17.83.

Nomad Foods Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.62%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. Nomad Foods's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.11%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nomad Foods

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in NOMD. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its stake in shares of Nomad Foods by 8.3% during the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 4,179,679 shares of the company's stock valued at $68,881,000 after purchasing an additional 320,900 shares during the period. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P boosted its position in Nomad Foods by 25.6% in the 3rd quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 1,418,497 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,036,000 after buying an additional 289,090 shares during the period. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC increased its position in shares of Nomad Foods by 47.4% during the second quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC now owns 472,133 shares of the company's stock worth $7,781,000 after acquiring an additional 151,810 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC bought a new stake in shares of Nomad Foods during the second quarter valued at approximately $2,412,000. Finally, Systematic Financial Management LP raised its stake in shares of Nomad Foods by 11.5% during the third quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 1,267,098 shares of the company's stock valued at $24,151,000 after acquiring an additional 130,792 shares in the last quarter. 75.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on NOMD. Mizuho cut their target price on shares of Nomad Foods from $28.00 to $24.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. StockNews.com raised Nomad Foods from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on Nomad Foods from $25.00 to $23.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 4th.

About Nomad Foods

Nomad Foods Limited, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, markets, and distributes a range of frozen food products in the United Kingdom and internationally. The company offers frozen fish products, including fish fingers, coated fish, and natural fish; ready-to-cook vegetable products, such as peas and spinach; and frozen poultry and meat products comprising nuggets, grills, and burgers.