Short Interest in Sylvamo Co. (NYSE:SLVM) Expands By 42.3%

Sylvamo Co. (NYSE:SLVM) was the target of a significant increase in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 897,400 shares, an increase of 42.3% from the February 13th total of 630,800 shares. Currently, 2.7% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 344,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.6 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Bank of America reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $96.00 price target on shares of Sylvamo in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Sylvamo from $83.00 to $80.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th.

Sylvamo Price Performance

NYSE:SLVM opened at $65.42 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $2.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 1.15. Sylvamo has a 12-month low of $56.20 and a 12-month high of $98.02. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The company’s 50-day moving average is $74.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $80.71.

Sylvamo (NYSE:SLVM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $1.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.84 by $0.10. Sylvamo had a net margin of 7.96% and a return on equity of 34.72%. Research analysts expect that Sylvamo will post 7.45 EPS for the current year.

Sylvamo Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 29th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 8th will be issued a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 8th. Sylvamo’s payout ratio is currently 24.97%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Jeanmichel Ribieras sold 21,250 shares of Sylvamo stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.53, for a total value of $1,392,512.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 153,144 shares in the company, valued at $10,035,526.32. This trade represents a 12.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sylvamo

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Sylvamo by 182.4% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 624 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 403 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Sylvamo by 43.6% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 662 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 201 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its position in Sylvamo by 40.9% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 737 shares of the company’s stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 214 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd boosted its position in shares of Sylvamo by 464.5% in the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 779 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,000 after acquiring an additional 641 shares during the period. Finally, LRI Investments LLC boosted its position in shares of Sylvamo by 4,825.0% in the third quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 788 shares of the company’s stock valued at $66,000 after acquiring an additional 772 shares during the period. 91.16% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sylvamo Company Profile

Sylvamo Corporation produces and markets uncoated freesheet for cutsize, offset paper, and pulp in Latin America, Europe, and North America. The company operates through Europe, Latin America, and North America segments. The Europe segment offers copy, tinted, and colored laser printing paper under REY Adagio and Pro-Design brands; and graphic and high-speed inkjet printing papers under the brand Jetstar; as well as produces uncoated freesheet papers.