Short Interest in Hasbro, Inc. (NASDAQ:HAS) Drops By 6.9%

Hasbro, Inc. (NASDAQ:HAS) was the target of a significant decline in short interest during the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 3,260,000 shares, a decline of 6.9% from the September 15th total of 3,500,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,340,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.4 days. Approximately 2.5% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Hasbro Stock Performance

Shares of HAS stock traded down $0.03 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $71.61. 1,388,319 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,629,253. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $69.08 and its 200 day moving average is $62.98. The company has a market capitalization of $9.97 billion, a P/E ratio of -7.06, a PEG ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 0.61. Hasbro has a 1 year low of $42.66 and a 1 year high of $73.46. The company has a current ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.95.

Hasbro (NASDAQ:HAS) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.78 by $0.44. The firm had revenue of $995.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $941.38 million. Hasbro had a positive return on equity of 38.83% and a negative net margin of 22.78%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.49 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Hasbro will post 3.94 EPS for the current year.

Hasbro Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st were issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.91%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 21st. Hasbro’s payout ratio is presently -27.61%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hasbro

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of HAS. Axiom Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hasbro by 1.6% in the third quarter. Axiom Advisory LLC now owns 10,880 shares of the company’s stock worth $787,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV increased its stake in Hasbro by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 6,588 shares of the company’s stock worth $385,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hasbro by 18.5% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,256 shares of the company’s stock valued at $81,000 after acquiring an additional 196 shares in the last quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV boosted its position in shares of Hasbro by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 32,400 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,895,000 after acquiring an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mather Group LLC. grew its holdings in shares of Hasbro by 56.7% during the third quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 804 shares of the company’s stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 291 shares in the last quarter. 91.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HAS has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $59.00 target price on shares of Hasbro in a report on Friday, July 26th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Hasbro from $78.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Hasbro from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Hasbro from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Hasbro from $75.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $73.18.

Hasbro Company Profile

Hasbro, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a toy and game company in the United States, Europe, Canada, Mexico, Latin America, Australia, China, and Hong Kong. The company operates through Consumer Products; Wizards of the Coast and Digital Gaming; Entertainment; and Corporate and Other segments.