Short Interest in Albany International Corporation (NYSE:AIN) Drops By 22.7%

Albany International Corporation (NYSE:AIN) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totaling 706,367 shares, a decrease of 22.7% from the December 15th total of 913,402 shares. Currently, 2.5% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 288,593 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.4 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 288,593 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.4 days. Currently, 2.5% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Truist Financial set a $55.00 target price on Albany International in a research note on Friday, January 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Albany International from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Albany International from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 18th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Albany International in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $61.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Albany International news, CEO Gunnar Kleveland purchased 2,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 17th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $42.04 per share, for a total transaction of $96,692.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 19,895 shares in the company, valued at approximately $836,385.80. This represents a 13.07% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.76% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Albany International

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in Albany International by 11,101.8% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 648,810 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $32,324,000 after buying an additional 643,018 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Albany International by 37.6% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,697,965 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $119,079,000 after acquiring an additional 464,040 shares in the last quarter. Invenomic Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Albany International during the third quarter worth about $17,269,000. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in Albany International by 1,078.5% during the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 313,830 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $16,727,000 after purchasing an additional 287,200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC lifted its position in Albany International by 1,809.0% in the third quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 216,122 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $11,519,000 after purchasing an additional 204,801 shares during the period. 97.37% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Albany International Stock Performance

AIN stock traded down $0.66 on Friday, hitting $57.86. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 335,858 shares, compared to its average volume of 277,058. The stock has a market cap of $1.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -29.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.21. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $50.11 and a two-hundred day moving average of $57.38. The company has a current ratio of 2.34, a quick ratio of 1.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. Albany International has a 1 year low of $41.15 and a 1 year high of $83.65.

Albany International (NYSE:AIN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The textile maker reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82 by ($0.11). Albany International had a negative net margin of 4.66% and a positive return on equity of 8.98%. The business had revenue of $307.44 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $303.41 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.80 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 12.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Albany International will post 3.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albany International Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 8th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 16th were issued a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 16th. This is an increase from Albany International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Albany International’s dividend payout ratio is presently -57.73%.

About Albany International

Albany International Corp. is a global advanced materials company specializing in engineered textiles and composites. Its business is organized into two primary segments: Process Media and Engineered Composites. The Process Media segment designs, manufactures and services press, forming and drying fabrics used in the production of paper and packaging materials, helping paper manufacturers improve efficiency, quality and sustainability. The Engineered Composites segment produces lightweight composite structures and components for aerospace and industrial applications, serving commercial and military aircraft programs as well as industrial markets that require high-performance, durable materials.

In the Process Media segment, Albany’s products include forming fabrics, press felts and dryer fabrics engineered to withstand extreme moisture and temperature conditions.