Heritage Global Inc. (NASDAQ:HGBL) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Heritage Global Inc. (NASDAQ:HGBL) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in August. As of August 14th, there was short interest totaling 61,774 shares, an increase of 159.9% from the July 30th total of 23,770 shares. Approximately 0.2% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 336,130 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.2 days.

Heritage Global Stock Performance

NASDAQ:HGBL opened at $1.28 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.34 million, a PE ratio of -3.12 and a beta of 0.45. Heritage Global has a 1 year low of $1.01 and a 1 year high of $1.96. The company has a current ratio of 1.69, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $1.18 and its 200 day simple moving average is $1.26.

Heritage Global (NASDAQ:HGBL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The company reported ($0.46) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.04 by ($0.50). The firm had revenue of $12.27 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.29 million. Heritage Global had a positive return on equity of 6.12% and a negative net margin of 29.63%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HGBL has been the topic of several analyst reports. Lake Street Capital lowered their target price on shares of Heritage Global from $4.50 to $3.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Heritage Global from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $3.00.

Institutional Trading of Heritage Global

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HGBL. Evergreen Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Heritage Global in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Heritage Global in the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new position in shares of Heritage Global during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Jane Street Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Heritage Global by 196.2% during the 4th quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 29,651 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 19,642 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Heritage Global by 29.9% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 49,951 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 11,512 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 33.46% of the company’s stock.

About Heritage Global

Heritage Global Inc operates as a global advisory and disposition firm specializing in the valuation, sale and auction of surplus and idle assets. Through its subsidiaries, Heritage Global Partners and Heritage Global Digital, the company delivers comprehensive end-to-end solutions, including asset appraisals, advisory services and multi-channel auction platforms. Its service offerings encompass industrial machinery and equipment, real estate, storage lockers and specialty assets, all designed to maximize recovery values for clients.

The company leverages both online and live in-person events to facilitate timely and transparent sales across diverse asset classes.