Espey Mfg. & Electronics Corp. (NYSEAMERICAN:ESP) Short Interest Update

Espey Mfg. & Electronics Corp. (NYSEAMERICAN:ESP) saw a large growth in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 9,500 shares, a growth of 131.7% from the February 29th total of 4,100 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 12,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.7 days. Approximately 0.6% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com raised shares of Espey Mfg. & Electronics from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 19th.

Espey Mfg. & Electronics Trading Up 0.7 %

NYSEAMERICAN ESP traded up $0.17 on Thursday, reaching $25.25. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,834 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,127. Espey Mfg. & Electronics has a twelve month low of $14.69 and a twelve month high of $27.32. The company has a market capitalization of $68.43 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.41 and a beta of 0.18.

Espey Mfg. & Electronics (NYSEAMERICAN:ESP) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 12th. The company reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter. The company had revenue of $10.30 million for the quarter. Espey Mfg. & Electronics had a return on equity of 12.78% and a net margin of 12.57%.

Espey Mfg. & Electronics Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 22nd will be issued a $0.175 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 21st. This represents a $0.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.77%. This is an increase from Espey Mfg. & Electronics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. Espey Mfg. & Electronics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.43%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Peggy A. Murphy sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.38, for a total value of $152,280.00. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 16.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Espey Mfg. & Electronics

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Perritt Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Espey Mfg. & Electronics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $62,000. BlackRock Inc. boosted its position in shares of Espey Mfg. & Electronics by 19.6% in the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 4,973 shares of the company’s stock valued at $83,000 after acquiring an additional 815 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in shares of Espey Mfg. & Electronics by 10.2% in the third quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 9,690 shares of the company’s stock valued at $134,000 after acquiring an additional 900 shares during the period. Secure Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Espey Mfg. & Electronics in the third quarter valued at approximately $192,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Espey Mfg. & Electronics in the second quarter valued at approximately $217,000. Institutional investors own 36.65% of the company’s stock.

About Espey Mfg. & Electronics

Espey Mfg. & Electronics Corp., a power electronics design and original equipment manufacturing company, designs, manufactures, and tests electronic equipment primarily for use in military and industrial applications in the United States and internationally. The company's principal products include power supplies, power converters, filters, power transformers, magnetic components, power distribution equipment, UPS systems, antennas, and high-power radar systems for use in AC and DC locomotives, shipboard power, shipboard radar, airborne power, ground-based radar, and ground mobile power applications.