UWM Holdings Corporation (NYSE:UWMC) Short Interest Up 32,340.9% in July

UWM Holdings Corporation (NYSE:UWMC) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totaling 28,840,000 shares, agrowthof32,340.9% from the June 30th total of 88,900 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 6,200,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.7 days. Based on an average trading volume of 6,200,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.7 days.

UWM Trading Up 4.0%

Shares of NYSE UWMC opened at $4.18 on Friday. UWM has a twelve month low of $3.80 and a twelve month high of $9.74. The stock has a market cap of $6.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -32.15 and a beta of 1.70. The company has a quick ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87. The company’s fifty day moving average is $4.20 and its 200-day moving average is $5.02.

UWM (NYSE:UWMC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported ($0.23) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.06 by ($0.29). The company had revenue of $613.37 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $558.80 million. UWM had a negative return on equity of 3.86% and a negative net margin of 0.36%. Equities research analysts predict that UWM will post 0.2 EPS for the current year.

UWM Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th were paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.6%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 18th. UWM’s dividend payout ratio is currently -307.69%.

Insider Transactions at UWM

In other UWM news, CEO Ishbia Mat sold 400,036 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.10, for a total transaction of $1,640,147.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 898,920 shares in the company, valued at $3,685,572. This trade represents a 30.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders have sold 7,200,648 shares of company stock valued at $30,194,717 in the last ninety days. 87.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of UWM

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of UWM by 101.8% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,863 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 2,958 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its position in UWM by 135.4% during the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 8,159 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 4,693 shares during the period. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of UWM in the first quarter valued at $53,000. Focus Partners Wealth acquired a new position in shares of UWM in the first quarter valued at $55,000. Finally, Independent Advisor Alliance bought a new position in shares of UWM in the first quarter valued at about $58,000. Institutional investors own 53.59% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on UWMC shares. UBS Group upgraded UWM from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $4.75 to $4.50 in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered shares of UWM from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $6.50 to $4.50 in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of UWM from $6.00 to $5.25 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Barclays upgraded shares of UWM from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $6.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, UWM presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $6.18.

UWM Company Profile

UWM Holdings Corporation engages in the residential mortgage lending business in the United States. The company offers mortgage loans through wholesale channel. It originates primarily conforming and government loans. UWM Holdings Corporation was founded in 1986 and is headquartered in Pontiac, Michigan.