Magna International Inc. (NYSE:MGA) Short Interest Update

Magna International Inc. (NYSE:MGA) (TSE:MG) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 7,400,000 shares, a drop of 53.3% from the February 28th total of 15,830,000 shares. Currently, 2.8% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,710,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.3 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on MGA shares. Bank of America downgraded shares of Magna International from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $52.00 to $48.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. CIBC reduced their target price on Magna International from $44.00 to $36.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Magna International from $43.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Raymond James dropped their price objective on Magna International from $53.00 to $50.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut Magna International from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $42.00 to $41.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Magna International presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $47.03.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Magna International

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Avior Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Magna International by 2,400.0% during the 4th quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 625 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Magna International by 2,126.5% during the 4th quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 757 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 723 shares during the period. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new position in Magna International during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC grew its holdings in Magna International by 43.1% in the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,036 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 312 shares during the period. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. increased its stake in Magna International by 37.2% in the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 1,111 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 301 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.49% of the company’s stock.

Magna International Trading Down 2.8 %

Shares of MGA stock traded down $0.98 on Friday, hitting $34.00. The company had a trading volume of 1,654,827 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,720,083. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $38.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $40.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.08. The firm has a market cap of $9.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.69, a P/E/G ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.65. Magna International has a twelve month low of $33.30 and a twelve month high of $54.36.

Magna International (NYSE:MGA) (TSE:MG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 14th. The company reported $1.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.46 by $0.23. Magna International had a net margin of 2.36% and a return on equity of 12.78%. The firm had revenue of $10.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.32 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.33 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Magna International will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Magna International Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were given a $0.485 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This is a positive change from Magna International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.71%. Magna International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 55.27%.

About Magna International

Magna International Inc designs, engineers, and manufactures components, assemblies, systems, subsystems, and modules for original equipment manufacturers of vehicles and light trucks worldwide. It operates through four segments: Body Exteriors & Structures, Power & Vision, Seating Systems, and Complete Vehicles.