Power Integrations, Inc. (NASDAQ:POWI) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Power Integrations, Inc. (NASDAQ:POWI) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 3,790,000 shares, a growth of 15.9% from the February 13th total of 3,270,000 shares. Approximately 6.8% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 473,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 8.0 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on POWI. StockNews.com cut Power Integrations from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $78.00 target price on shares of Power Integrations in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Power Integrations currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $78.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Power Integrations news, CEO Balu Balakrishnan sold 12,507 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.64, for a total value of $758,424.48. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 600,002 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $36,384,121.28. This represents a 2.04 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Radu Barsan sold 10,393 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.08, for a total value of $686,769.44. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 45,295 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,993,093.60. This represents a 18.66 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 39,544 shares of company stock valued at $2,433,105. 1.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Power Integrations by 110.6% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 537 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 282 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in shares of Power Integrations by 1,618.2% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 567 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 534 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in Power Integrations by 43.9% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 629 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the period. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its position in Power Integrations by 133.2% in the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 674 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 385 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Power Integrations during the fourth quarter worth about $51,000.

Power Integrations Trading Down 2.2 %

NASDAQ POWI traded down $1.27 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $55.90. The company had a trading volume of 116,048 shares, compared to its average volume of 409,967. The company has a market capitalization of $3.18 billion, a PE ratio of 98.03, a P/E/G ratio of 4.08 and a beta of 1.11. Power Integrations has a twelve month low of $54.55 and a twelve month high of $79.13. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $60.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $62.04.

Power Integrations (NASDAQ:POWI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The semiconductor company reported $0.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.28 by ($0.12). Power Integrations had a net margin of 7.69% and a return on equity of 4.48%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Power Integrations will post 0.93 EPS for the current year.

Power Integrations Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.50%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Power Integrations’s dividend payout ratio is 147.37%.

Power Integrations Company Profile

Power Integrations, Inc designs, develops, manufactures, and markets analog and mixed-signal integrated circuits (ICs), and other electronic components and circuitry used in high-voltage power conversion worldwide. The company provides a range of alternating current to direct current power conversion products that address power supply ranging from less than one watt of output to approximately 500 watts of output for mobile-device chargers, consumer appliances, utility meters, LCD monitors, main and standby power supplies for desktop computers and TVs, LED lighting, and various other consumer and industrial applications, as well as power conversion in high-power applications comprising industrial motors, solar and wind-power systems, electric vehicles, and high-voltage DC transmission systems.