Thomson Reuters Co. (NYSE:TRI) Short Interest Up 20.9% in March

Thomson Reuters Co. (NYSE:TRI - Get Free Report) TSE: TRI was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,330,000 shares, a growth of 20.9% from the March 15th total of 1,100,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 475,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.8 days. Approximately 1.0% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Thomson Reuters Trading Down 0.2 %

TRI traded down $0.28 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $181.98. The company's stock had a trading volume of 780,756 shares, compared to its average volume of 408,249. Thomson Reuters has a 52-week low of $149.80 and a 52-week high of $184.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $173.77 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $168.32. The firm has a market cap of $81.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.22, a PEG ratio of 5.67 and a beta of 0.70.

Thomson Reuters (NYSE:TRI - Get Free Report) TSE: TRI last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The business services provider reported $1.01 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.04. Thomson Reuters had a return on equity of 14.62% and a net margin of 30.45%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Thomson Reuters will post 3.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Thomson Reuters Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 20th were issued a $0.595 dividend. This is a positive change from Thomson Reuters's previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $2.38 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.31%. Thomson Reuters's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.67%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on TRI shares. Scotiabank boosted their price target on Thomson Reuters from $187.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Thomson Reuters from $168.00 to $188.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. CIBC increased their price objective on shares of Thomson Reuters from $165.00 to $174.00 in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Thomson Reuters in a report on Thursday, April 10th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $180.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on Thomson Reuters from $164.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $177.80.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Thomson Reuters

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its position in Thomson Reuters by 254.7% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 32,310 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $5,582,000 after purchasing an additional 23,202 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of Thomson Reuters by 5.3% in the first quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 2,074 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $358,000 after buying an additional 105 shares during the period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its stake in shares of Thomson Reuters by 3.0% in the first quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 8,857 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,530,000 after buying an additional 255 shares in the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Thomson Reuters by 7.4% during the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 11,277 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,948,000 after buying an additional 776 shares during the period. Finally, First American Bank lifted its position in Thomson Reuters by 1.9% during the 1st quarter. First American Bank now owns 24,132 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $4,170,000 after acquiring an additional 455 shares in the last quarter. 17.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Thomson Reuters

Thomson Reuters Corporation engages in the provision of business information services in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. It operates in five segments: Legal Professionals, Corporates, Tax & Accounting Professionals, Reuters News, and Global Print. The Legal Professionals segment offers research and workflow products focusing on legal research and integrated legal workflow solutions that combine content, tools, and analytics to law firms and governments.