Suburban Propane Partners, L.P. (NYSE:SPH) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

Suburban Propane Partners, L.P. (NYSE:SPH - Get Free Report) was the target of a large drop in short interest in the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 1,110,000 shares, a drop of 18.4% from the February 13th total of 1,360,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 265,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.2 days. Approximately 1.8% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Douglas Brinkworth sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.50, for a total transaction of $41,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 159,355 shares in the company, valued at $3,266,777.50. This trade represents a 1.24 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Michael A. Schueler sold 7,746 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.93, for a total value of $162,123.78. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 11,133 shares of the company's stock, valued at $233,013.69. This trade represents a 41.03 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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Institutional Investors Weigh In On Suburban Propane Partners

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its stake in shares of Suburban Propane Partners by 7.9% in the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 10,961 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $197,000 after buying an additional 800 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of Suburban Propane Partners in the 3rd quarter valued at $270,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in shares of Suburban Propane Partners by 31.8% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 643,916 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $11,552,000 after buying an additional 155,360 shares during the period. Cetera Trust Company N.A acquired a new stake in shares of Suburban Propane Partners in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Independence Bank of Kentucky acquired a new stake in shares of Suburban Propane Partners in the 4th quarter valued at $52,000. 30.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Suburban Propane Partners Price Performance

SPH stock traded down $0.25 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $20.79. 1,408,220 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 190,228. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $20.61 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $19.04. Suburban Propane Partners has a 1-year low of $15.20 and a 1-year high of $22.24. The company has a market cap of $1.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.62 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39.

Suburban Propane Partners (NYSE:SPH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The energy company reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.76 by ($0.46). Suburban Propane Partners had a net margin of 5.18% and a return on equity of 11.81%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.38 EPS.

Suburban Propane Partners Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 4th were issued a dividend of $0.325 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 4th. This represents a $1.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.25%. Suburban Propane Partners's dividend payout ratio is 122.64%.

About Suburban Propane Partners

Suburban Propane Partners, L.P., through its subsidiaries, engages in the retail marketing and distribution of propane, renewable propane, fuel oil, and refined fuels in the United States. The company operates through four segments: Propane, Fuel Oil and Refined Fuels, Natural Gas and Electricity, and All Other.