TORM plc (NASDAQ:TRMD) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

TORM plc (NASDAQ:TRMD - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 5,470,000 shares, an increase of 22.4% from the January 31st total of 4,470,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,200,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.6 days. Approximately 10.3% of the company's shares are sold short.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its holdings in shares of TORM by 94.0% during the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 4,366,769 shares of the company's stock valued at $84,585,000 after purchasing an additional 2,115,672 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of TORM by 22.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,885,040 shares of the company's stock worth $36,417,000 after acquiring an additional 345,463 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP boosted its position in shares of TORM by 2.6% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 1,266,900 shares of the company's stock worth $43,315,000 after acquiring an additional 32,500 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in TORM during the fourth quarter valued at $21,273,000. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its stake in TORM by 24.3% during the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 561,889 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,929,000 after purchasing an additional 109,916 shares in the last quarter. 73.89% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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TORM Stock Down 1.7 %

TORM stock traded down $0.33 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $19.06. The stock had a trading volume of 1,137,163 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,179,459. The company has a quick ratio of 2.24, a current ratio of 2.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.14. TORM has a 12-month low of $16.76 and a 12-month high of $40.47. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $19.80 and its 200-day moving average price is $25.11.

TORM Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be issued a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 12.59%. TORM's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.28%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of TORM from $37.00 to $32.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 14th.

About TORM

TORM plc, a shipping company, owns and operates a fleet of product tankers in the United Kingdom. It operates in two operating segments, Tanker and Marine Exhaust. The Tanker segment transports refined oil products, such as gasoline, jet fuel, kerosene, naphtha, and gas oil, as well as dirty petroleum products, including fuel oil.