The Hackett Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCKT) Short Interest Up 43.3% in February

The Hackett Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCKT) was the target of a large increase in short interest in the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 323,600 shares, an increase of 43.3% from the February 13th total of 225,800 shares. Approximately 1.3% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 105,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.1 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On The Hackett Group

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in The Hackett Group by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 14,393 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $442,000 after buying an additional 503 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank boosted its holdings in shares of The Hackett Group by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 48,992 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,505,000 after purchasing an additional 700 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of The Hackett Group by 353.1% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 947 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 738 shares during the last quarter. State of Wyoming boosted its holdings in shares of The Hackett Group by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 19,821 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $609,000 after purchasing an additional 747 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp boosted its holdings in shares of The Hackett Group by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 23,789 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $731,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares during the last quarter. 78.12% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on HCKT shares. StockNews.com cut The Hackett Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Barrington Research lifted their price target on The Hackett Group from $28.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, The Hackett Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $32.67.

The Hackett Group Price Performance

Shares of The Hackett Group stock opened at $28.19 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The Hackett Group has a twelve month low of $20.23 and a twelve month high of $34.02. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $30.36 and a 200 day moving average price of $28.98. The firm has a market cap of $783.43 million, a PE ratio of 26.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.03.

The Hackett Group (NASDAQ:HCKT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The business services provider reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.41 by ($0.06). The Hackett Group had a return on equity of 36.40% and a net margin of 9.44%. The firm had revenue of $77.46 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $75.64 million. Sell-side analysts predict that The Hackett Group will post 1.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Hackett Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.12 per share. This is a positive change from The Hackett Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 21st. The Hackett Group’s payout ratio is 45.28%.

The Hackett Group Company Profile

The Hackett Group, Inc operates as an intellectual property-based executive advisory, strategic consulting, and digital transformation company in the United States, Europe, and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Global Strategy & Business Transformation, Oracle Solutions, and SAP Solutions.