Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. (NYSE:RGR) Sees Significant Decrease in Short Interest

Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. (NYSE:RGR - Get Free Report) was the target of a large decrease in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 460,200 shares, a decrease of 18.2% from the March 15th total of 562,900 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 146,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.1 days. Approximately 2.8% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. Stock Up 0.5 %

NYSE RGR traded up $0.19 on Wednesday, hitting $39.91. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,455 shares, compared to its average volume of 151,629. Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. has a 1-year low of $34.11 and a 1-year high of $47.28. The company's 50-day moving average is $39.03 and its 200 day moving average is $38.11. The firm has a market cap of $668.97 million, a PE ratio of 22.55 and a beta of 0.22.

Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. (NYSE:RGR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.62. Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. had a net margin of 5.70% and a return on equity of 9.49%. The firm had revenue of $145.78 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $137.77 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.58 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. will post 2.31 EPS for the current year.

Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a $0.24 dividend. This is a positive change from Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.41%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is currently 54.24%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 24th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc.

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 52,011 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,044,000 after purchasing an additional 538 shares during the last quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. by 115.1% in the 1st quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 968 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 518 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. by 748.1% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 653 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 576 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. by 18,642.9% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,312 shares of the company's stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 1,305 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. by 71.7% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 411,918 shares of the company's stock valued at $14,570,000 after purchasing an additional 172,055 shares during the last quarter. 64.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc.

Sturm, Ruger & Co, Inc engages in the business of designing, manufacturing, and selling firearms to domestic customers. It operates through the Firearms and Castings segments. The Firearms segment focuses on manufacturing and selling rifles, pistols, and revolvers principally to a number of federally licensed, independent wholesale distributors.