Vector Group Ltd. (NYSE:VGR) Sees Large Drop in Short Interest

Vector Group Ltd. (NYSE:VGR) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest during the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,150,000 shares, a decline of 20.1% from the May 15th total of 3,940,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,060,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.0 days. Approximately 2.3% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Vector Group from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 6th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vector Group

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Vector Group by 1.6% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 17,868,987 shares of the company’s stock worth $195,844,000 after purchasing an additional 283,371 shares during the period. Clark Estates Inc. NY acquired a new position in shares of Vector Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $3,000,000. Deutsche Bank AG raised its holdings in Vector Group by 95.7% during the third quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 534,358 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,686,000 after purchasing an additional 261,358 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in Vector Group by 24.2% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,249,177 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,291,000 after purchasing an additional 243,214 shares during the period. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. boosted its stake in Vector Group by 14.0% during the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 822,119 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,747,000 after purchasing an additional 101,171 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 64.09% of the company’s stock.

Vector Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VGR traded down $0.27 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $10.54. The company had a trading volume of 1,386,413 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,034,248. Vector Group has a 12 month low of $9.27 and a 12 month high of $13.43. The stock has a market cap of $1.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.08 and a beta of 1.06. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $10.57 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $10.82.

Vector Group (NYSE:VGR) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The company reported $0.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $324.57 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $333.30 million. Vector Group had a net margin of 12.98% and a negative return on equity of 25.89%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.22 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Vector Group will post 1.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Vector Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 5th were given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 5th. Vector Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 68.97%.

About Vector Group

Vector Group Ltd., through its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of cigarettes in the United States. It operates in two segments, Tobacco and Real Estate. The company produces cigarettes under the Montego, EAGLE 20's, Pyramid, Grand Prix, Liggett Select, Eve, and USA brand names, as well as various partner and private label brands.