Harmonic Inc. (NASDAQ:HLIT) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Harmonic Inc. (NASDAQ:HLIT) saw a significant increase in short interest in June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 7,000,000 shares, an increase of 6.5% from the May 31st total of 6,570,000 shares. Approximately 6.1% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 1,630,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.3 days.

Harmonic Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of Harmonic stock opened at $11.91 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The company has a market cap of $1.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.85 and a beta of 0.89. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $11.33 and its 200-day moving average price is $12.05. Harmonic has a 52-week low of $8.80 and a 52-week high of $16.39.

Harmonic (NASDAQ:HLIT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 29th. The communications equipment provider reported ($0.05) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.01) by ($0.04). Harmonic had a return on equity of 1.35% and a net margin of 12.37%. The firm had revenue of $122.06 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $121.70 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.06 earnings per share. Harmonic’s revenue for the quarter was down 22.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Harmonic will post 0.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $18.00 price objective on shares of Harmonic in a research note on Monday, June 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $17.20.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Harmonic news, SVP Ian Graham sold 52,730 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.95, for a total value of $577,393.50. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 63,616 shares in the company, valued at approximately $696,595.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 2.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Harmonic

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Scopia Capital Management LP raised its position in shares of Harmonic by 78.5% in the 3rd quarter. Scopia Capital Management LP now owns 5,649,163 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $54,401,000 after purchasing an additional 2,484,825 shares during the last quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP acquired a new stake in shares of Harmonic during the fourth quarter worth $19,257,000. Wolf Hill Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Harmonic during the fourth quarter valued at $16,879,000. Jane Street Group LLC raised its stake in Harmonic by 1,276.3% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 1,203,297 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $16,172,000 after acquiring an additional 1,115,870 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of Harmonic by 12.7% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 8,796,165 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $114,702,000 after purchasing an additional 990,425 shares during the period. 99.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Harmonic

Harmonic Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides broadband solutions worldwide. The company operates through Broadband and Video segments. The Broadband segment sells broadband access solutions and related services, including cOS software-based broadband access solutions to broadband operators; and cOS central cloud services, a subscription service for cOS customers.