Jacobs Solutions Inc. (NYSE:J) Short Interest Up 8.6% in November

Jacobs Solutions Inc. (NYSE:J) was the target of a large growth in short interest in November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,510,000 shares, a growth of 8.6% from the October 31st total of 1,390,000 shares. Approximately 1.2% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 788,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.9 days.

Jacobs Solutions Stock Performance

J stock traded down $1.87 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $138.00. The company had a trading volume of 654,730 shares, compared to its average volume of 809,458. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 1.20. The firm has a market cap of $17.11 billion, a PE ratio of 21.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.70. Jacobs Solutions has a 12 month low of $104.90 and a 12 month high of $150.54. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $141.10 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $142.42.

Jacobs Solutions (NYSE:J) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 19th. The company reported $1.37 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.08 by ($0.71). Jacobs Solutions had a return on equity of 14.82% and a net margin of 5.16%. The firm had revenue of $2.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.50 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.90 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Jacobs Solutions will post 6.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Jacobs Solutions Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 25th were issued a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.84%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 25th. Jacobs Solutions’s payout ratio is 18.33%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on J. Raymond James upgraded shares of Jacobs Solutions from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $160.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $152.00 target price on shares of Jacobs Solutions in a research report on Tuesday. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Jacobs Solutions from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Jacobs Solutions from $147.00 to $149.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Jacobs Solutions in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $156.50.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in J. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its stake in Jacobs Solutions by 5,170.1% in the second quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 419,075 shares of the company’s stock worth $58,550,000 after purchasing an additional 411,123 shares during the last quarter. Sessa Capital IM L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Jacobs Solutions in the 3rd quarter valued at about $46,168,000. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC boosted its holdings in Jacobs Solutions by 6.1% during the 2nd quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 3,326,433 shares of the company’s stock valued at $464,736,000 after acquiring an additional 192,166 shares during the period. Soros Fund Management LLC grew its position in Jacobs Solutions by 34.3% during the 3rd quarter. Soros Fund Management LLC now owns 500,907 shares of the company’s stock worth $65,569,000 after acquiring an additional 127,874 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Jacobs Solutions by 11.8% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,212,285 shares of the company’s stock worth $169,366,000 after purchasing an additional 127,605 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 85.65% of the company’s stock.

About Jacobs Solutions

Jacobs Solutions Inc provides consulting, technical, engineering, scientific, and project delivery services for the government and private sectors in the United States, Europe, Canada, India, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, the Middle East, and Africa. It operates through Critical Mission Solutions, People & Places Solutions, Divergent Solutions, and PA Consulting segments.