EMCOR Group, Inc. (NYSE:EME) Short Interest Up 12.9% in December

EMCOR Group, Inc. (NYSE:EME) saw a large increase in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 490,200 shares, an increase of 12.9% from the December 15th total of 434,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 377,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.3 days. Approximately 1.1% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Institutional Trading of EMCOR Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. MinichMacGregor Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in EMCOR Group by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. MinichMacGregor Wealth Management LLC now owns 19,893 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $9,029,000 after purchasing an additional 494 shares during the period. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in EMCOR Group by 12.9% in the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 456 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $207,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. Adirondack Trust Co. increased its stake in EMCOR Group by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. Adirondack Trust Co. now owns 420 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $191,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Mutual Advisors LLC increased its stake in EMCOR Group by 14.1% in the fourth quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 909 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $413,000 after purchasing an additional 112 shares during the period. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its stake in EMCOR Group by 108.9% in the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 16,389 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $7,439,000 after purchasing an additional 8,545 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.59% of the company’s stock.

EMCOR Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE EME traded down $3.88 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $507.12. 375,221 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 305,268. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.33 billion, a PE ratio of 25.75 and a beta of 1.12. EMCOR Group has a one year low of $217.22 and a one year high of $532.38. The company’s 50 day moving average is $488.17 and its 200 day moving average is $430.88.

EMCOR Group (NYSE:EME) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The construction company reported $5.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.98 by $0.82. EMCOR Group had a return on equity of 34.99% and a net margin of 6.51%. The company had revenue of $3.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.77 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.61 EPS. EMCOR Group’s quarterly revenue was up 15.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that EMCOR Group will post 20.74 EPS for the current year.

EMCOR Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, January 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 16th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.20%. EMCOR Group’s payout ratio is presently 5.08%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on EME shares. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on EMCOR Group in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. They issued a “sell” rating and a $445.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com upgraded EMCOR Group from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Northcoast Research started coverage on EMCOR Group in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $600.00 price target for the company. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus started coverage on EMCOR Group in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $600.00 price target for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $518.75.

About EMCOR Group

EMCOR Group, Inc provides construction and facilities, building, and industrial services in the United States and the United Kingdom. It offers design, integration, installation, start-up, operation, and maintenance services related to power transmission, distribution, and generation systems; energy solutions; premises electrical and lighting systems; process instrumentation; low-voltage systems; voice and data communications systems; roadway and transit lighting, signaling, and fiber optic lines; computerized traffic control systems, and signal and communication equipment; heating, ventilation, air conditioning, refrigeration, and geothermal solutions; clean-room process ventilation systems; fire protection and suppression systems; plumbing, process, and high-purity piping systems; controls and filtration systems; water and wastewater treatment systems; central plant heating and cooling systems; crane and rigging services; millwright services; and steel fabrication, erection, and welding services.