Universal Electronics Inc. (NASDAQ:UEIC) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Universal Electronics Inc. (NASDAQ:UEIC) saw a significant increase in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 98,300 shares, an increase of 20.2% from the February 13th total of 81,800 shares. Currently, 0.9% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 67,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.5 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Universal Electronics

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barclays PLC grew its position in Universal Electronics by 33.5% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 21,943 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $202,000 after buying an additional 5,512 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in Universal Electronics by 34.7% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 17,823 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $165,000 after purchasing an additional 4,591 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC bought a new position in Universal Electronics during the third quarter worth about $163,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Universal Electronics during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in Universal Electronics by 5.3% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 42,980 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $397,000 after purchasing an additional 2,144 shares during the period. 79.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Universal Electronics Price Performance

UEIC stock opened at $6.89 on Wednesday. Universal Electronics has a twelve month low of $6.73 and a twelve month high of $14.20. The company has a market cap of $90.34 million, a PE ratio of -3.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 1.21. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $9.11 and its 200 day simple moving average is $9.55.

Universal Electronics (NASDAQ:UEIC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The technology company reported $0.10 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by ($0.04). Universal Electronics had a negative return on equity of 3.67% and a negative net margin of 6.09%. The firm had revenue of $110.45 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $102.47 million. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Universal Electronics will post 0.17 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UEIC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $15.00 price target on shares of Universal Electronics in a research report on Friday, February 21st. StockNews.com downgraded Universal Electronics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 1st.

Universal Electronics Company Profile

Universal Electronics Inc designs, develops, manufactures, ships, and supports control and sensor technology solutions in the United States, the People’s Republic of China, rest of Asia, Europe, Latin America, and internationally. The company offers voice-enabled automatically-programmed universal two-way radio frequency, as well as infrared remote controls to video service providers, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), retailers, and private label customers; wall-mount and handheld thermostat controllers and connected accessories for smart energy management systems to OEM customers, hotels, hospitality, and system integrators; proprietary and standards-based RF sensors for residential security, safety, and home automation applications; and integrated circuits on which its software and universal device control database is embedded to OEMs, video service providers, and private label customers.