Aptiv PLC (NYSE:APTV) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Aptiv PLC (NYSE:APTV) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 11,700,000 shares, a growth of 37.8% from the January 31st total of 8,490,000 shares. Currently, 5.1% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 3,540,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.3 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Aptiv

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its position in Aptiv by 1,410.3% during the third quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 438 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 409 shares in the last quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management acquired a new stake in Aptiv during the fourth quarter worth approximately $37,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in Aptiv during the third quarter worth approximately $43,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in Aptiv during the third quarter worth approximately $43,000. Finally, Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. grew its position in Aptiv by 100.0% during the third quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 702 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 351 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.21% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

APTV has been the subject of several recent research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Aptiv from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $78.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and set a $73.00 price target on shares of Aptiv in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on Aptiv from $105.00 to $95.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Robert W. Baird raised Aptiv from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the company from $75.00 to $82.00 in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on Aptiv from $82.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $85.61.

Aptiv Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE APTV traded down $1.27 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $62.74. 5,651,454 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,362,565. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.12, a P/E/G ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 1.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.53. Aptiv has a 52 week low of $51.47 and a 52 week high of $85.56. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $63.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $63.81.

Aptiv (NYSE:APTV) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The auto parts company reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.12. Aptiv had a return on equity of 15.63% and a net margin of 9.07%. Sell-side analysts predict that Aptiv will post 7.2 EPS for the current year.

About Aptiv

Aptiv PLC engages in design, manufacture, and sale of vehicle components in North America, Europe, Middle East, Africa, the Asia Pacific, South America, and internationally. The company provides electrical, electronic, and safety technology solutions to the automotive and commercial vehicle markets. It operates through two segments, Signal and Power Solutions, and Advanced Safety and User Experience.