CGI Inc. (NYSE:GIB) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

CGI Inc. (NYSE:GIB - Get Free Report) TSE: GIB.A was the target of a large increase in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,680,000 shares, an increase of 12.8% from the December 31st total of 1,490,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 148,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 11.3 days. Currently, 0.8% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

CGI Stock Performance

Shares of CGI stock traded down $0.02 on Friday, reaching $119.16. 145,263 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 195,623. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.02 billion, a PE ratio of 21.55, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 1.31 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The company has a 50 day moving average of $111.60 and a 200 day moving average of $111.75. CGI has a 52 week low of $96.92 and a 52 week high of $121.55.

CGI (NYSE:GIB - Get Free Report) TSE: GIB.A last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $1.41 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.41. CGI had a net margin of 11.72% and a return on equity of 19.32%. Equities analysts forecast that CGI will post 5.79 earnings per share for the current year.

CGI Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $0.1039 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $0.42 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.35%. CGI's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.32%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GIB has been the subject of several research reports. CIBC raised shares of CGI from a "neutral" rating to an "outperformer" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $155.00 to $178.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Cibc World Mkts upgraded shares of CGI from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. StockNews.com raised shares of CGI from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on CGI from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of CGI from $118.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $153.25.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of CGI during the third quarter valued at about $28,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in shares of CGI in the 4th quarter valued at about $62,000. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich acquired a new position in shares of CGI in the 4th quarter valued at $83,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of CGI by 288.2% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 788 shares of the technology company's stock worth $91,000 after buying an additional 585 shares during the period. Finally, CWM LLC raised its position in CGI by 14.8% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,365 shares of the technology company's stock worth $157,000 after acquiring an additional 176 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 66.68% of the company's stock.

CGI Company Profile

CGI Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides information technology (IT) and business process services. Its services include the business and strategic IT consulting, systems integration, and software solutions. The company also provides application development, modernization and maintenance, holistic enterprise digitization, automation, hybrid and cloud management, and business process services; intellectual property-based solutions; business consulting; managed IT services; and IT infrastructure services.