Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory, Inc. (NASDAQ:RMCF) Short Interest Up 169.0% in May

Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory, Inc. (NASDAQ:RMCF) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totaling 24,029 shares, a growth of 169.0% from the April 30th total of 8,934 shares. Approximately 0.4% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 70,169 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.3 days.

Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:RMCF traded down $0.02 during trading on Friday, reaching $1.97. The company had a trading volume of 35,566 shares, compared to its average volume of 52,797. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.38 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.79 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $2.25 and its 200 day moving average price is $2.13. Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory has a fifty-two week low of $1.16 and a fifty-two week high of $2.99.

Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory (NASDAQ:RMCF) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 29th. The company reported ($0.41) EPS for the quarter. Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory had a negative return on equity of 62.48% and a negative net margin of 13.62%.The firm had revenue of $6.76 million during the quarter.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory in a research note on Monday, March 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Sell rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Sell”.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, major shareholder Allen C. Harper sold 50,000 shares of Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory stock in a transaction on Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2.45, for a total value of $122,500.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 860,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,107,000. The trade was a 5.49% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder Heritage Railways In American sold 50,000 shares of Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory stock in a transaction on Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2.45, for a total transaction of $122,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 860,000 shares in the company, valued at $2,107,000. The trade was a 5.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 212,230 shares of company stock valued at $526,028 over the last ninety days. 42.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory by 12.6% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 94,756 shares of the company’s stock valued at $213,000 after acquiring an additional 10,572 shares during the period. American Capital Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory by 90.6% in the first quarter. American Capital Advisory LLC now owns 134,867 shares of the company’s stock valued at $303,000 after acquiring an additional 64,108 shares during the period. Thompson Davis & CO. Inc. acquired a new stake in Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory in the first quarter valued at $215,000. Finally, DRW Securities LLC acquired a new position in Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory during the fourth quarter worth about $235,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 50.27% of the company’s stock.

About Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory

Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory, Inc is a specialty chocolate confectionery franchisor and manufacturer headquartered in Durango, Colorado. Established in 1981, the company develops, produces and markets a range of premium chocolate products, including truffles, caramels, toffees, fudge, nuts, dipped fruits and caramel apples. It operates company-owned retail stores as well as a franchised network, supplying handcrafted confections and related gift items through more than 300 retail locations across North America and select international markets.

From its origins as a single store in downtown Durango, Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory introduced its first franchised outlets in the mid-1980s and completed a public offering in 1985.