Alta Equipment Group Inc. (NYSE:ALTG) Short Interest Update

Alta Equipment Group Inc. (NYSE:ALTG) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,740,000 shares, a decrease of 5.4% from the March 15th total of 1,840,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 328,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 5.3 days. Currently, 7.7% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and set a $22.00 target price on shares of Alta Equipment Group in a report on Friday, March 15th. B. Riley restated a “buy” rating and issued a $22.00 price target (down previously from $25.00) on shares of Alta Equipment Group in a report on Friday, March 15th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Craig Brubaker sold 7,405 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.77, for a total transaction of $87,156.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 95,077 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,119,056.29. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Ryan Greenawalt sold 34,951 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.36, for a total transaction of $397,043.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 5,842,625 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $66,372,220. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Craig Brubaker sold 7,405 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.77, for a total transaction of $87,156.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 95,077 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,119,056.29. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have acquired 41,108 shares of company stock worth $445,000 and have sold 2,816,886 shares worth $31,011,780. 20.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ALTG. BlackRock Inc. raised its stake in Alta Equipment Group by 49.7% during the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 2,076,650 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,915,000 after acquiring an additional 689,619 shares during the period. Voss Capital LLC lifted its stake in Alta Equipment Group by 20.1% in the fourth quarter. Voss Capital LLC now owns 3,245,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,141,000 after buying an additional 543,500 shares during the last quarter. Mill Road Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Alta Equipment Group by 23.5% during the fourth quarter. Mill Road Capital Management LLC now owns 2,361,002 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,206,000 after acquiring an additional 450,023 shares during the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. bought a new stake in Alta Equipment Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $4,558,000. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its stake in Alta Equipment Group by 8,745.2% during the 2nd quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 355,223 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,156,000 after purchasing an additional 351,207 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.58% of the company’s stock.

Alta Equipment Group Trading Down 5.4 %

NYSE:ALTG opened at $11.71 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.40, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 1.32. Alta Equipment Group has a one year low of $8.76 and a one year high of $17.98. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $11.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $11.30. The stock has a market cap of $384.21 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 65.06 and a beta of 1.65.

Alta Equipment Group (NYSE:ALTG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 14th. The company reported ($0.08) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.05) by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $521.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $478.68 million. Alta Equipment Group had a net margin of 0.47% and a return on equity of 8.60%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Alta Equipment Group will post 0.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alta Equipment Group Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 15th were paid a dividend of $0.057 per share. This represents a $0.23 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 14th. Alta Equipment Group’s payout ratio is currently 127.78%.

Alta Equipment Group Company Profile

Alta Equipment Group Inc owns and operates integrated equipment dealership platforms in the United States. It operates through three segments: Material Handling, Construction Equipment, and Master Distribution. The company operates a branch network that sells, rents, and provides parts and service support for various categories of specialized equipment, including lift trucks and other material handling equipment, heavy and compact earthmoving equipment, crushing and screening equipment, environmental processing equipment, cranes and aerial work platforms, paving and asphalt equipment, and other construction equipment and related products.