Short Interest in Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (NYSE:HMC) Expands By 45.8%

Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (NYSE:HMC) saw a significant increase in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,230,000 shares, an increase of 45.8% from the November 30th total of 1,530,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,190,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.9 days. Approximately 0.1% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Honda Motor Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:HMC traded down $0.20 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $28.56. The company had a trading volume of 848,969 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,008,160. The stock has a market cap of $48.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.05, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.62. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $27.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $30.16. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. Honda Motor has a 52-week low of $23.41 and a 52-week high of $37.90.

Honda Motor (NYSE:HMC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported $0.43 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.86 by ($0.43). Honda Motor had a net margin of 4.53% and a return on equity of 7.53%. The company had revenue of $36.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $35.60 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Honda Motor will post 4.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Honda Motor from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 2nd. UBS Group upgraded Honda Motor from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th.

Institutional Trading of Honda Motor

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in HMC. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Honda Motor by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 10,345,816 shares of the company’s stock valued at $328,273,000 after buying an additional 227,890 shares in the last quarter. Equity Investment Corp raised its holdings in Honda Motor by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Equity Investment Corp now owns 2,097,616 shares of the company’s stock valued at $66,557,000 after acquiring an additional 36,221 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of Honda Motor by 52.5% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,355,835 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,021,000 after acquiring an additional 466,842 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Honda Motor by 10.3% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 442,458 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,265,000 after acquiring an additional 41,216 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James & Associates grew its position in shares of Honda Motor by 5.5% in the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 348,112 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,046,000 after purchasing an additional 18,134 shares in the last quarter. 5.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Honda Motor Company Profile

Honda Motor Co, Ltd. develops, manufactures, and distributes motorcycles, automobiles, power, and other products in Japan, North America, Europe, Asia, and internationally. It operates through four segments: Motorcycle Business, Automobile Business, Financial Services Business, and Power Product and Other Businesses.