Jacobs Solutions Inc. (NYSE:J) Short Interest Up 52.9% in February

Jacobs Solutions Inc. (NYSE:J) was the target of a large increase in short interest in February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,660,000 shares, an increase of 52.9% from the January 31st total of 1,740,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 819,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.2 days. Approximately 2.2% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Jacobs Solutions

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Total Wealth Planning & Management Inc. bought a new stake in Jacobs Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at $751,000. Menard Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Jacobs Solutions in the 4th quarter valued at about $107,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new stake in Jacobs Solutions in the 4th quarter valued at about $13,385,000. Brooklyn FI LLC bought a new stake in Jacobs Solutions in the 4th quarter valued at about $463,000. Finally, Integrated Advisors Network LLC raised its stake in Jacobs Solutions by 27.9% during the 4th quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC now owns 3,780 shares of the company’s stock worth $505,000 after buying an additional 825 shares during the period. 85.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Jacobs Solutions Trading Down 1.8 %

NYSE:J traded down $2.22 on Tuesday, reaching $122.94. 1,278,641 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 834,464. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.72. Jacobs Solutions has a 1-year low of $110.95 and a 1-year high of $150.54. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The company’s 50 day moving average is $133.88 and its 200-day moving average is $139.23.

Jacobs Solutions (NYSE:J) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.29 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $2.93 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.92 billion. Jacobs Solutions had a net margin of 4.28% and a return on equity of 14.87%. Jacobs Solutions’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.45 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Jacobs Solutions will post 6.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Jacobs Solutions Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This is a positive change from Jacobs Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.04%. Jacobs Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.39%.

Jacobs Solutions announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, February 4th that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

J has been the subject of a number of research reports. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on Jacobs Solutions from $154.00 to $148.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $152.00 target price on shares of Jacobs Solutions in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Benchmark lowered Jacobs Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $150.00 price objective on shares of Jacobs Solutions in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Jacobs Solutions in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Jacobs Solutions currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $155.89.

About Jacobs Solutions

Jacobs Solutions Inc provides consulting, technical, engineering, scientific, and project delivery services for the government and private sectors in the United States, Europe, Canada, India, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, the Middle East, and Africa. It operates through Critical Mission Solutions, People & Places Solutions, Divergent Solutions, and PA Consulting segments.