Short Interest in Ituran Location and Control Ltd. (NASDAQ:ITRN) Expands By 18.6%

Ituran Location and Control Ltd. (NASDAQ:ITRN) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 144,480 shares, a growth of 18.6% from the March 15th total of 121,830 shares. Currently, 0.7% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 123,504 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.2 days.

Ituran Location and Control Stock Performance

NASDAQ ITRN traded up $1.05 on Friday, reaching $55.97. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 189,752 shares, compared to its average volume of 133,765. Ituran Location and Control has a twelve month low of $32.38 and a twelve month high of $56.56. The stock has a market cap of $1.11 billion, a PE ratio of 19.23 and a beta of 0.66. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $49.94 and its two-hundred day moving average is $43.94.

Ituran Location and Control (NASDAQ:ITRN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Saturday, February 14th. The industrial products company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter. Ituran Location and Control had a net margin of 16.15% and a return on equity of 27.27%. The company had revenue of $93.50 million during the quarter.

Ituran Location and Control Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 30th were issued a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 10.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 30th. This is a positive change from Ituran Location and Control’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Ituran Location and Control’s dividend payout ratio is currently 206.19%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on ITRN shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Ituran Location and Control from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, April 12th. Loop Capital set a $57.00 target price on shares of Ituran Location and Control in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Ituran Location and Control from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Ituran Location and Control in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Maxim Group assumed coverage on shares of Ituran Location and Control in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $70.00 target price for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat, Ituran Location and Control has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $60.67.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ituran Location and Control

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ITRN. GW&K Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Ituran Location and Control by 909.3% in the 4th quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 539,817 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $23,218,000 after acquiring an additional 486,331 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC lifted its stake in Ituran Location and Control by 721.6% during the fourth quarter. Nuveen LLC now owns 104,190 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,481,000 after buying an additional 91,509 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Global Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Ituran Location and Control by 106.4% during the fourth quarter. Strategic Global Advisors LLC now owns 132,325 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,691,000 after buying an additional 68,222 shares in the last quarter. Man Group plc lifted its stake in Ituran Location and Control by 90.8% during the second quarter. Man Group plc now owns 137,657 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,331,000 after buying an additional 65,502 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in Ituran Location and Control by 71.1% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 125,478 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,397,000 after buying an additional 52,150 shares in the last quarter. 94.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Ituran Location and Control

Ituran Location and Control Ltd. is a provider of wireless vehicle tracking and stolen vehicle recovery services. The company leverages a combination of cellular and global positioning system (GPS) technologies to offer real-time monitoring and location-based solutions for private vehicle owners, fleet operators and insurance companies. Its core offerings include subscription-based tracking devices, centralized control centers and software platforms that enable clients to detect unauthorized vehicle use, dispatch recovery teams and manage fleet logistics.

Founded in 1994 in Israel, Ituran pioneered the use of wireless communications for security and telematics applications.