Arko Corp. (NASDAQ:ARKO) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Arko Corp. (NASDAQ:ARKO - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,050,000 shares, an increase of 23.0% from the February 28th total of 2,480,000 shares. Currently, 4.1% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 666,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.6 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Arko

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Arko in the third quarter worth about $98,000. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in shares of Arko in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $72,000. PDT Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Arko by 8.7% in the 3rd quarter. PDT Partners LLC now owns 75,685 shares of the company's stock worth $531,000 after purchasing an additional 6,031 shares during the period. Readystate Asset Management LP increased its position in shares of Arko by 7.2% during the 3rd quarter. Readystate Asset Management LP now owns 220,972 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,551,000 after purchasing an additional 14,845 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC raised its holdings in Arko by 12.2% during the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 109,881 shares of the company's stock valued at $771,000 after buying an additional 11,975 shares during the period. 78.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Stifel Nicolaus downgraded shares of Arko from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $8.50 to $7.50 in a report on Thursday, February 27th.

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Arko Stock Performance

NASDAQ:ARKO remained flat at $3.80 during trading hours on Friday. The company's stock had a trading volume of 835,952 shares, compared to its average volume of 459,955. The company has a market capitalization of $439.93 million, a PE ratio of 23.75 and a beta of 0.68. Arko has a 1-year low of $3.51 and a 1-year high of $7.84. The company's 50 day moving average price is $5.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $6.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.86, a current ratio of 1.63 and a quick ratio of 1.13.

Arko Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a dividend of $0.03 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $0.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.16%. Arko's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 92.31%.

About Arko

Arko Corp. operates convenience stores in the United States. It operates through Retail, Wholesale, Fleet Fueling, and GPMP segments. The Retail segment engages in the sale of fuel and merchandise to retail consumers. Its Wholesale segment supplies fuel to third-party dealers and consignment agents. The Fleet Fueling segment supplies fuel to proprietary and third-party cardlock, and issuance of proprietary fuel cards.