Short Interest in KBR, Inc. (NYSE:KBR) Decreases By 9.7%

KBR, Inc. (NYSE:KBR) saw a large decrease in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,770,000 shares, a decrease of 9.7% from the March 15th total of 1,960,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,340,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.3 days. Approximately 1.3% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Jennifer Myles sold 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.95, for a total value of $471,600.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 38,524 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,270,989.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.08% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On KBR

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KBR. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of KBR by 16.3% during the 1st quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 11,008 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $602,000 after acquiring an additional 1,540 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors L.P. raised its stake in KBR by 71.7% during the first quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 34,270 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,876,000 after purchasing an additional 14,308 shares during the period. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can boosted its holdings in KBR by 10.0% in the 1st quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can now owns 79,664 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $4,488,000 after purchasing an additional 7,244 shares during the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp grew its stake in shares of KBR by 11.3% in the 1st quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 25,239 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,384,000 after buying an additional 2,563 shares during the period. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its holdings in shares of KBR by 103.0% during the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 1,920 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $105,000 after buying an additional 974 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.02% of the company’s stock.

KBR Stock Up 0.5 %

NYSE KBR traded up $0.30 on Wednesday, hitting $61.98. The company had a trading volume of 1,255,916 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,047,289. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $60.26 and its 200-day moving average price is $56.65. KBR has a 12-month low of $49.37 and a 12-month high of $65.87.

KBR (NYSE:KBR) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The construction company reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.69. KBR had a negative net margin of 3.81% and a positive return on equity of 25.08%. The business had revenue of $1.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.78 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.69 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that KBR will post 3.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KBR Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were given a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This is a positive change from KBR’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.97%. KBR’s dividend payout ratio is -29.27%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on KBR. Citigroup raised their target price on KBR from $62.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of KBR from $65.00 to $63.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of KBR from $72.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. KeyCorp raised their price target on shares of KBR from $63.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of KBR from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 20th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $72.29.

About KBR

KBR, Inc provides scientific, technology, and engineering solutions to governments and commercial customers worldwide. It operates through Government Solutions and Sustainable Technology Solutions segments. The Government Solutions segment offers life-cycle support solutions to defense, intelligence, space, aviation, and other programs and missions for military and other government agencies in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia.