Fluor Co. (NYSE:FLR) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Fluor Co. (NYSE:FLR) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 9,270,000 shares, an increase of 33.6% from the December 31st total of 6,940,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 2,300,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.0 days.

Fluor Stock Performance

FLR stock traded up $0.56 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $48.66. The company had a trading volume of 1,233,812 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,642,860. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $52.12 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $50.35. Fluor has a 12 month low of $35.04 and a 12 month high of $60.10. The firm has a market cap of $8.35 billion, a PE ratio of 32.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 1.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a current ratio of 1.77.

Fluor (NYSE:FLR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 8th. The construction company reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by ($0.25). The company had revenue of $4.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.74 billion. Fluor had a return on equity of 20.05% and a net margin of 1.64%. Fluor’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.02 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Fluor will post 2.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Thomas P. D’agostino sold 7,681 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.39, for a total transaction of $433,131.59. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 137,974 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,780,353.86. The trade was a 5.27 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Mark E. Fields sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.63, for a total transaction of $2,831,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 147,045 shares in the company, valued at $8,327,158.35. This represents a 25.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fluor

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its position in Fluor by 3.7% during the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 4,918 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $235,000 after buying an additional 176 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Fluor by 10.3% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,281 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $112,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares during the last quarter. Seelaus Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Fluor by 3.7% in the third quarter. Seelaus Asset Management LLC now owns 6,445 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $307,000 after buying an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Fluor by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,808 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $533,000 after buying an additional 241 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Coldstream Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Fluor by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,981 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $286,000 after buying an additional 277 shares in the last quarter. 88.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on FLR shares. Truist Financial lowered their target price on Fluor from $66.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. DA Davidson increased their price objective on Fluor from $58.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Baird R W downgraded shares of Fluor from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Fluor from $60.00 to $59.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, KeyCorp lifted their price objective on shares of Fluor from $59.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $59.29.

Fluor Company Profile

Fluor Corporation provides engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC); fabrication and modularization; operation and maintenance; asset integrity; and project management services worldwide. The company operates through Energy Solutions, Urban Solutions, Mission Solutions, and Other segments. The Energy Solutions segment provides solutions to the energy transition markets, including asset decarbonization, carbon capture, renewable fuels, waste-to-energy, green chemicals, hydrogen, nuclear power, and other low-carbon energy sources.