Short Interest in McGrath RentCorp (NASDAQ:MGRC) Declines By 17.8%

McGrath RentCorp (NASDAQ:MGRC) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest during the month of February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 437,000 shares, a decline of 17.8% from the January 31st total of 531,500 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 138,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.2 days.

Insider Transactions at McGrath RentCorp

In other news, Director Kimberly Ann Box sold 1,000 shares of McGrath RentCorp stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.69, for a total transaction of $124,690.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 7,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $935,175. The trade was a 11.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Gilda Malek sold 919 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.78, for a total value of $111,915.82. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of McGrath RentCorp

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Atala Financial Inc acquired a new stake in shares of McGrath RentCorp in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new position in McGrath RentCorp during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. KBC Group NV grew its holdings in shares of McGrath RentCorp by 32.5% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 767 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $81,000 after purchasing an additional 188 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new position in shares of McGrath RentCorp in the fourth quarter worth $89,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in McGrath RentCorp by 15.8% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,183 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $125,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.05% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on MGRC. Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of McGrath RentCorp from $124.00 to $139.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. StockNews.com upgraded McGrath RentCorp from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, CJS Securities initiated coverage on shares of McGrath RentCorp in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $152.00 target price for the company.

McGrath RentCorp Price Performance

MGRC stock traded down $1.24 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $113.63. 57,100 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 146,031. McGrath RentCorp has a 12-month low of $95.50 and a 12-month high of $129.93. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $119.18 and its 200 day moving average is $114.29. The company has a market cap of $2.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.75.

McGrath RentCorp (NASDAQ:MGRC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The financial services provider reported $1.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.08. McGrath RentCorp had a net margin of 25.44% and a return on equity of 13.68%. The firm had revenue of $243.75 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $246.93 million. On average, research analysts forecast that McGrath RentCorp will post 6.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McGrath RentCorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 16th will be issued a $0.485 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 16th. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.71%. This is a positive change from McGrath RentCorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. McGrath RentCorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.57%.

McGrath RentCorp Company Profile

McGrath RentCorp operates as a business to business rental company in the United States and internationally. It rents and sells relocatable modular buildings, portable storage containers, and electronic test equipment. The company operates through four segments: Mobile Modular, Portable Storage, TRS-RenTelco, and Enviroplex.