Escalade, Incorporated (NASDAQ:ESCA) Short Interest Update

Escalade, Incorporated (NASDAQ:ESCA) saw a significant increase in short interest during the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 95,900 shares, an increase of 28.2% from the March 31st total of 74,800 shares. Approximately 1.1% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 19,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 5.0 days.

Institutional Trading of Escalade

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its holdings in Escalade by 6.2% in the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 23,614 shares of the company’s stock worth $474,000 after buying an additional 1,369 shares during the period. Barclays PLC purchased a new position in shares of Escalade in the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Escalade by 40.6% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 7,037 shares of the company’s stock worth $141,000 after acquiring an additional 2,033 shares during the period. Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its stake in shares of Escalade by 13.8% in the fourth quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 16,940 shares of the company’s stock worth $340,000 after acquiring an additional 2,056 shares during the period. Finally, Denali Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Escalade during the third quarter worth about $47,000. 65.22% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com cut shares of Escalade from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd.

Escalade Stock Performance

NASDAQ:ESCA opened at $13.67 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 4.41. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $13.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $16.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $189.47 million, a PE ratio of 15.02 and a beta of 1.21. Escalade has a 52-week low of $11.42 and a 52-week high of $22.01.

Escalade (NASDAQ:ESCA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, March 29th. The company reported $0.21 earnings per share for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $65.51 million for the quarter. Escalade had a return on equity of 7.78% and a net margin of 4.76%. Analysts forecast that Escalade will post 1.29 EPS for the current year.

Escalade Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 8th will be given a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 8th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.39%. Escalade’s payout ratio is currently 65.93%.

About Escalade

Escalade, Incorporated, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, distributes, imports, and sells sporting goods in North America, Europe, and internationally. The company provides various sporting goods brands in basketball goals, archery, indoor and outdoor game recreation, and fitness products.