Monro, Inc. (NASDAQ:MNRO) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Monro, Inc. (NASDAQ:MNRO) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 4,320,000 shares, an increase of 22.7% from the February 13th total of 3,520,000 shares. Currently, 14.9% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 744,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 5.8 days.

Monro Stock Performance

Shares of Monro stock opened at $17.06 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $19.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $24.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $510.93 million, a P/E ratio of 26.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.09. Monro has a 12 month low of $15.75 and a 12 month high of $32.06. The company has a current ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45.

Monro (NASDAQ:MNRO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The auto parts company reported $0.19 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by ($0.12). Monro had a return on equity of 3.76% and a net margin of 1.64%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Monro will post 0.63 EPS for the current year.

Monro Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th were given a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 25th. Monro’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 175.00%.

Institutional Trading of Monro

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MNRO. Pacer Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Monro in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,899,000. Cooper Creek Partners Management LLC increased its holdings in Monro by 66.4% during the 4th quarter. Cooper Creek Partners Management LLC now owns 929,288 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $23,046,000 after acquiring an additional 370,960 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. increased its holdings in Monro by 34.0% during the 4th quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 1,193,289 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $29,594,000 after acquiring an additional 302,515 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Monro by 20.5% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,606,868 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $46,374,000 after acquiring an additional 273,265 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Monro by 18.7% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,611,200 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $39,957,000 after acquiring an additional 253,518 shares during the period.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $31.00 target price on shares of Monro in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $21.00 target price on shares of Monro in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Monro from $26.00 to $24.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 27th.

About Monro

Monro, Inc provides automotive undercar repair, and tire sales and services in the United States. It offers replacement tires and tire related services, automotive undercar repair services, and routine maintenance services primarily to passenger cars, light trucks, and vans. The company also provides other products and services for brakes; mufflers and exhaust systems; and steering, drive train, suspension, and wheel alignment.