Shoe Carnival, Inc. (NASDAQ:SCVL) Short Interest Up 27.1% in March

Shoe Carnival, Inc. (NASDAQ:SCVL) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,850,000 shares, an increase of 27.1% from the February 28th total of 3,030,000 shares. Approximately 21.7% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 493,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 7.8 days.

Shoe Carnival Trading Up 3.0 %

Shoe Carnival stock traded up $0.67 on Wednesday, reaching $23.00. 525,633 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 340,240. The stock has a market cap of $625.03 million, a PE ratio of 8.46 and a beta of 1.35. Shoe Carnival has a twelve month low of $20.51 and a twelve month high of $46.92. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $23.92 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $31.91.

Shoe Carnival (NASDAQ:SCVL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The company reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $262.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $277.89 million. Shoe Carnival had a net margin of 6.12% and a return on equity of 12.52%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.59 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Shoe Carnival will post 2.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Shoe Carnival Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Investors of record on Monday, April 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This is a positive change from Shoe Carnival’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 7th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.61%. Shoe Carnival’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.39%.

Shoe Carnival declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Thursday, December 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $50.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 5.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Shoe Carnival

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Quarry LP bought a new position in Shoe Carnival during the third quarter worth $66,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Shoe Carnival during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $76,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new stake in shares of Shoe Carnival in the fourth quarter worth $99,000. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Shoe Carnival during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $178,000. Finally, FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Shoe Carnival by 8.7% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,266 shares of the company’s stock worth $187,000 after acquiring an additional 343 shares in the last quarter. 66.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Shoe Carnival

Shoe Carnival, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a family footwear retailer in the United States. The company offers range of dress, casual, work, and athletic shoes, as well as sandals and boots for men, women, and children; and various accessories. The company also operates stores, and sells its products through online shopping at shoecarnival.com, as well as through mobile app.