Powell Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:POWL) Short Interest Down 16.3% in December

Powell Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:POWL) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,390,000 shares, a decline of 16.3% from the December 15th total of 1,660,000 shares. Currently, 14.8% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 457,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.0 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

POWL has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Roth Capital raised Powell Industries to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. StockNews.com upgraded Powell Industries from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Roth Mkm started coverage on Powell Industries in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $312.00 price target for the company.

Powell Industries Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ POWL traded up $7.99 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $257.23. 220,795 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 405,419. Powell Industries has a 12 month low of $76.29 and a 12 month high of $364.98. The company has a market capitalization of $3.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 0.88. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $263.28 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $216.90.

Powell Industries Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th were issued a dividend of $0.265 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $1.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.41%. Powell Industries’s dividend payout ratio is presently 8.62%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Powell Industries news, major shareholder Thomas W. Powell sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $347.74, for a total value of $1,738,700.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 677,265 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $235,512,131.10. This trade represents a 0.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 2.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Powell Industries

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new position in shares of Powell Industries during the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,038,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Powell Industries by 1,119.3% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 98,590 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $21,886,000 after buying an additional 90,504 shares during the period. Driehaus Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Powell Industries in the second quarter valued at approximately $11,658,000. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Powell Industries in the third quarter valued at approximately $13,606,000. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Powell Industries during the third quarter worth $12,176,000. 89.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Powell Industries

Powell Industries, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, sells, and services custom-engineered equipment and systems. The company’s principal products include integrated power control room substations, custom-engineered modules, electrical houses, medium-voltage circuit breakers, monitoring and control communications systems, motor control centers, switches, and bus duct systems, as well as traditional and arc-resistant distribution switchgears and control gears.