Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. Purchases New Stake in The Shyft Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SHYF)

Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. bought a new position in shares of The Shyft Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SHYF) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm bought 748,633 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,789,000. The Shyft Group accounts for 0.8% of Ausdal Financial Partners Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new stake in The Shyft Group during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in The Shyft Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $48,000. FMR LLC boosted its stake in The Shyft Group by 301.4% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,726 shares of the company’s stock worth $97,000 after acquiring an additional 5,801 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in The Shyft Group in the fourth quarter worth about $209,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of The Shyft Group by 24.3% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 18,274 shares of the company’s stock valued at $215,000 after purchasing an additional 3,575 shares in the last quarter. 85.84% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on SHYF shares. DA Davidson upgraded The Shyft Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $15.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $16.00 target price on shares of The Shyft Group in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th.

The Shyft Group Trading Down 1.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ SHYF opened at $9.19 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $321.03 million, a PE ratio of -102.10 and a beta of 1.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.82. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $10.93 and its 200-day moving average price is $12.03. The Shyft Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $8.27 and a 52-week high of $17.56.

The Shyft Group (NASDAQ:SHYF) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.14 by ($0.09). The Shyft Group had a negative net margin of 0.36% and a positive return on equity of 2.75%. The business had revenue of $201.43 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $211.90 million. On average, equities research analysts expect that The Shyft Group, Inc. will post 0.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Shyft Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.05 per share. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 27th. The Shyft Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently -222.22%.

About The Shyft Group

The Shyft Group, Inc engages in the manufacture and assembly of specialty vehicles for the commercial and recreational vehicle industries in the United States and internationally. It operates in two segments, Fleet Vehicles and Services, and Specialty Vehicles. The Fleet Vehicles and Services segment offers commercial vehicles used in the e-commerce/last mile/parcel delivery, beverage and grocery delivery, laundry and linen, mobile retail, and trades and construction industries.