Blackbaud, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLKB) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Blackbaud, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLKB) saw a significant increase in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 717,600 shares, an increase of 25.9% from the February 13th total of 570,100 shares. Currently, 1.9% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 225,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.2 days.

Blackbaud Price Performance

BLKB stock opened at $64.51 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $72.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $78.69. Blackbaud has a 12-month low of $62.99 and a 12-month high of $88.95. The firm has a market cap of $3.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.93 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.40.

Blackbaud (NASDAQ:BLKB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The technology company reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.08 by ($0.50). Blackbaud had a negative net margin of 24.83% and a positive return on equity of 26.30%. The company had revenue of $302.23 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $303.41 million. On average, analysts expect that Blackbaud will post 3.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Blackbaud from $80.00 to $76.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $85.33.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Blackbaud

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vestcor Inc bought a new position in Blackbaud in the 4th quarter worth approximately $75,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Blackbaud by 42.0% during the 3rd quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,174 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $99,000 after buying an additional 347 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV raised its position in shares of Blackbaud by 33.9% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,676 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $124,000 after buying an additional 424 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Blackbaud during the 3rd quarter valued at $142,000. Finally, Huntington National Bank raised its position in shares of Blackbaud by 13.9% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,864 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $138,000 after buying an additional 227 shares in the last quarter. 94.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Blackbaud Company Profile

Blackbaud, Inc provides cloud software solutions to nonprofits, foundations, education institutions, and healthcare organizations in the United States and internationally. The company offers fundraising and engagement solutions, such as Blackbaud Raiser's Edge NXT, Blackbaud CRM, Blackbaud eTapestry, Blackbaud Luminate Online, Blackbaud TeamRaiser, JustGiving, Blackbaud Fundraiser Performance Management, Blackbaud Guided Fundraising, and Blackbaud Altru; and financial management solutions comprising Blackbaud Financial Edge NXT, Blackbaud Tuition Management, and Blackbaud Financial Aid and Billing Management.