Magic Software Enterprises Ltd. (NASDAQ:MGIC) Sees Large Drop in Short Interest

Magic Software Enterprises Ltd. (NASDAQ:MGIC) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 146,900 shares, a decline of 23.5% from the March 15th total of 192,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 73,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.0 days. Currently, 0.8% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Magic Software Enterprises Stock Performance

Shares of Magic Software Enterprises stock traded down $0.19 during trading on Monday, hitting $13.11. 13,261 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 55,751. Magic Software Enterprises has a 52-week low of $9.51 and a 52-week high of $14.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a current ratio of 1.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $643.69 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.73 and a beta of 1.01. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $13.00 and a 200-day simple moving average of $12.26.

Magic Software Enterprises (NASDAQ:MGIC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 11th. The software maker reported $0.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.25 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $142.58 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $137.00 million. Magic Software Enterprises had a net margin of 6.49% and a return on equity of 15.42%. On average, research analysts forecast that Magic Software Enterprises will post 0.95 EPS for the current year.

Magic Software Enterprises Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be given a $0.327 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 22nd. This represents a dividend yield of 4.6%. This is an increase from Magic Software Enterprises’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.24. Magic Software Enterprises’s dividend payout ratio is 86.67%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Magic Software Enterprises

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MGIC. Tidal Investments LLC grew its position in shares of Magic Software Enterprises by 4.6% in the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 28,917 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $342,000 after purchasing an additional 1,278 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc raised its holdings in shares of Magic Software Enterprises by 100.0% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 4,000 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Magic Software Enterprises by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 58,105 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $699,000 after purchasing an additional 2,587 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in Magic Software Enterprises by 4,274.4% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 5,818 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $69,000 after acquiring an additional 5,685 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Magic Software Enterprises by 45.5% during the 4th quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 18,795 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $226,000 after purchasing an additional 5,878 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 24.70% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on MGIC. William Blair downgraded Magic Software Enterprises from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. StockNews.com raised Magic Software Enterprises from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Magic Software Enterprises from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th.

Magic Software Enterprises Company Profile

Magic Software Enterprises Ltd. provides proprietary application development, vertical software solutions, business process integration, information technologies (IT) outsourcing software services, and cloud-based services in Israel and internationally. Its Software Services segment develops, markets, sells, and supports application platform, software applications, and business and process integration solutions and related services.