Short Interest in Enpro Inc. (NYSE:NPO) Rises By 23.6%

Enpro Inc. (NYSE:NPO - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 582,600 shares, an increase of 23.6% from the February 28th total of 471,200 shares. Approximately 2.8% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 116,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 5.0 days.

Enpro Trading Down 4.3 %

NYSE NPO traded down $6.33 during trading on Friday, hitting $142.65. The company had a trading volume of 211,136 shares, compared to its average volume of 107,634. Enpro has a one year low of $134.96 and a one year high of $214.58. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 2.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The company's fifty day moving average is $180.55 and its 200-day moving average is $172.86. The company has a market cap of $3.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.23 and a beta of 1.46.

Enpro (NYSE:NPO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The industrial products company reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $258.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $250.10 million. Enpro had a net margin of 6.95% and a return on equity of 10.25%. The business's revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.19 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Enpro will post 7.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Enpro Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th were issued a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. This is a boost from Enpro's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.87%. Enpro's payout ratio is currently 35.84%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on NPO shares. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Enpro from $170.00 to $215.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. StockNews.com lowered Enpro from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, KeyCorp lifted their price objective on shares of Enpro from $180.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Enpro

In other Enpro news, CAO Steven R. Bower sold 997 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.66, for a total value of $199,061.02. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Enpro

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in NPO. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Enpro during the fourth quarter valued at $60,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new stake in shares of Enpro during the fourth quarter worth about $69,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Enpro by 786.6% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 594 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $102,000 after buying an additional 527 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of Enpro in the 3rd quarter valued at $99,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Enpro by 386.5% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 647 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $111,000 after buying an additional 514 shares in the last quarter. 98.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Enpro Company Profile

Enpro Inc design, develops, manufactures, and markets proprietary, value-added products and solutions to safeguard critical environments in the United States, Europe, and internationally. It operates through two segments, Sealing Technologies and Advanced Surface Technologies. The Sealing Technologies segment offers single-use hygienic seals, tubing, components and assemblies; metallic, non-metallic, and composite material gaskets; dynamic seals; compression packing; hydraulic components; expansion joints; and wall penetration products for chemical and petrochemical processing, pulp and paper processing, nuclear energy, hydrogen, natural gas, food and biopharmaceutical processing, primary metal manufacturing, mining, water and waste treatment, commercial vehicle, aerospace, medical, filtration, and semiconductor fabrication industries.