Federated Hermes, Inc. (NYSE:FHI) Sees Large Drop in Short Interest

Federated Hermes, Inc. (NYSE:FHI) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest in the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 2,970,000 shares, a drop of 7.5% from the September 15th total of 3,210,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 593,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.0 days. Approximately 3.8% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Federated Hermes Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of FHI opened at $38.41 on Friday. Federated Hermes has a 1-year low of $30.23 and a 1-year high of $38.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 2.75 and a quick ratio of 2.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.91, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a 50-day moving average of $35.18 and a 200 day moving average of $34.13.

Federated Hermes (NYSE:FHI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.89 by $0.07. Federated Hermes had a net margin of 15.90% and a return on equity of 28.60%. The business had revenue of $402.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $400.35 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.81 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Federated Hermes will post 3.63 EPS for the current year.

Federated Hermes Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 8th were issued a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 8th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.23%. This is a positive change from Federated Hermes’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. Federated Hermes’s payout ratio is currently 35.23%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP John B. Fisher sold 79,830 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.71, for a total transaction of $2,611,239.30. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 442,570 shares in the company, valued at $14,476,464.70. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Federated Hermes

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of FHI. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Federated Hermes by 39.5% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,184,759 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,116,000 after purchasing an additional 335,737 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Federated Hermes by 59.1% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,813,190 shares of the company’s stock worth $61,395,000 after acquiring an additional 673,496 shares in the last quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd bought a new position in shares of Federated Hermes during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,246,000. Foundation Resource Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Federated Hermes by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Foundation Resource Management Inc. now owns 418,573 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,119,000 after acquiring an additional 3,994 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Congress Asset Management Co. MA raised its stake in shares of Federated Hermes by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. MA now owns 50,202 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,813,000 after acquiring an additional 518 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.94% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on FHI. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Federated Hermes from $34.00 to $33.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 29th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Federated Hermes from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Federated Hermes from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Federated Hermes from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Federated Hermes from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $37.80.

Federated Hermes Company Profile

Federated Hermes, Inc is a publicly owned investment manager. Through its subsidiaries, the firm provides its services to individuals, including high net worth individuals, banking or thrift institutions, investment companies, pension and profit sharing plans, pooled investment vehicles, charitable organizations, state or municipal government entities, and registered investment advisors.