Short Interest in National Grid plc (NYSE:NGG) Drops By 29.5%

National Grid plc (NYSE:NGG) was the target of a significant drop in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,030,000 shares, a drop of 29.5% from the February 28th total of 1,460,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 687,900 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.5 days. Currently, 0.1% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on NGG. Sanford C. Bernstein raised National Grid from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Citigroup upgraded National Grid from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of National Grid from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

National Grid Stock Performance

Shares of NGG stock traded up $0.22 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $65.83. The company had a trading volume of 588,327 shares, compared to its average volume of 615,276. The company has a market capitalization of $64.41 billion, a PE ratio of 12.66, a PEG ratio of 5.64 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.61 and a quick ratio of 1.54. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $62.04 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $62.96. National Grid has a one year low of $54.24 and a one year high of $72.21.

Institutional Trading of National Grid

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its position in National Grid by 20.0% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,043 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $62,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares during the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC lifted its position in shares of National Grid by 36.2% during the 4th quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 723 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the last quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in National Grid by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 23,925 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,422,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. increased its position in National Grid by 67.6% in the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 491 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 198 shares during the period. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP lifted its holdings in shares of National Grid by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 12,500 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $743,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. 4.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About National Grid

National Grid plc transmits and distributes electricity and gas. It operates through UK Electricity Transmission, UK Electricity Distribution, UK Electricity System Operator, New England, New York, National Grid Ventures, and Other segments. The UK Electricity Transmission segment provides electricity transmission and construction work services in England and Wales.