Alliance Resource Partners, L.P. (NASDAQ:ARLP) Short Interest Update

Alliance Resource Partners, L.P. (NASDAQ:ARLP) was the target of a large increase in short interest in July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totalling 4,060,000 shares, an increase of 6.8% from the June 30th total of 3,800,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 413,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 9.8 days. Approximately 4.6% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on ARLP. Benchmark lifted their price objective on shares of Alliance Resource Partners from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. StockNews.com raised shares of Alliance Resource Partners from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 30th.

Alliance Resource Partners Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ARLP traded up $0.24 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $24.69. The company had a trading volume of 100,834 shares, compared to its average volume of 431,854. Alliance Resource Partners has a 12 month low of $18.32 and a 12 month high of $26.21. The stock has a market cap of $3.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.35 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 2.08 and a quick ratio of 1.54. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $24.47 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $22.10.

Alliance Resource Partners (NASDAQ:ARLP) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 29th. The energy company reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93 by ($0.16). Alliance Resource Partners had a net margin of 21.04% and a return on equity of 27.75%. The company had revenue of $593.35 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $624.72 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.30 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Alliance Resource Partners will post 3.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Alliance Resource Partners Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 11.34%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 7th. Alliance Resource Partners’s payout ratio is 61.27%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alliance Resource Partners

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ARLP. Continuum Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Alliance Resource Partners during the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Beacon Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Alliance Resource Partners by 135.8% during the 2nd quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 1,462 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 842 shares in the last quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Alliance Resource Partners in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Cove Street Capital LLC bought a new stake in Alliance Resource Partners during the second quarter worth approximately $49,000. Finally, Mather Group LLC. acquired a new stake in shares of Alliance Resource Partners in the second quarter valued at $51,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 18.11% of the company’s stock.

Alliance Resource Partners Company Profile

Alliance Resource Partners, L.P., a diversified natural resource company, produces and markets coal primarily to utilities and industrial users in the United States. The company operates through four segments: Illinois Basin Coal Operations, Appalachia Coal Operations, Oil & Gas Royalties, and Coal Royalties.