Gildan Activewear Inc. (NYSE:GIL) Sees Significant Decline in Short Interest

Gildan Activewear Inc. (NYSE:GIL) (TSE:GIL) was the target of a large decrease in short interest in November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,000,000 shares, a decrease of 12.7% from the October 31st total of 2,290,000 shares. Approximately 1.3% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 599,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.3 days.

Gildan Activewear Stock Down 0.0 %

NYSE:GIL traded down $0.02 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $50.09. 511,123 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 716,609. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.72 billion, a PE ratio of 19.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.40. Gildan Activewear has a 12-month low of $30.68 and a 12-month high of $50.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 2.31. The business has a 50-day moving average of $48.28 and a two-hundred day moving average of $43.24.

Gildan Activewear (NYSE:GIL) (TSE:GIL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The textile maker reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85. Gildan Activewear had a return on equity of 26.88% and a net margin of 13.06%. The firm had revenue of $891.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $882.85 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.74 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Gildan Activewear will post 2.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Gildan Activewear Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st will be given a $0.152 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $0.61 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.21%. Gildan Activewear’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.41%.

Institutional Trading of Gildan Activewear

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in GIL. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new position in Gildan Activewear during the third quarter valued at $29,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of Gildan Activewear by 96.1% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 810 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 397 shares during the last quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Gildan Activewear in the 2nd quarter valued at about $51,000. Tobam purchased a new stake in shares of Gildan Activewear in the second quarter worth about $53,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Gildan Activewear by 16.9% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,893 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $66,000 after acquiring an additional 274 shares during the period. 82.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on GIL shares. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their target price on shares of Gildan Activewear from $52.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Gildan Activewear from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. CIBC upped their target price on shares of Gildan Activewear from $48.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. TD Securities upped their target price on shares of Gildan Activewear from $58.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Gildan Activewear from $54.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Gildan Activewear has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $51.05.

Gildan Activewear Company Profile

Gildan Activewear Inc manufactures and sells various apparel products in the United States, North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America. It provides various activewear products, including T-shirts, fleece tops and bottoms, and sports shirts under the Gildan, Gildan Performance, Gildan Hammer, Glidan Softstyle, Gildan Heavy Cotton, Gildan Ultra Cotton, Gildan DryBlend, Gildan HeavyBlend, Comfort Colors, and American Apparel brands.