Short Interest in Newpark Resources, Inc. (NYSE:NR) Increases By 34.1%

Newpark Resources, Inc. (NYSE:NR) was the target of a large increase in short interest in the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 880,600 shares, an increase of 34.1% from the March 31st total of 656,900 shares. Approximately 1.2% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 621,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.4 days.

Newpark Resources Stock Performance

Shares of Newpark Resources stock traded down $0.30 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $6.94. 376,975 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 651,133. The company has a market capitalization of $591.29 million, a P/E ratio of 45.28 and a beta of 2.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a current ratio of 2.62. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $7.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $6.86. Newpark Resources has a 12 month low of $3.40 and a 12 month high of $7.84.

Newpark Resources (NYSE:NR) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The oil and gas company reported $0.04 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.07 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $167.82 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $170.87 million. Newpark Resources had a return on equity of 6.53% and a net margin of 1.94%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Newpark Resources will post 0.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Newpark Resources

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in NR. CWM LLC grew its position in Newpark Resources by 495.4% in the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,537 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 3,775 shares in the last quarter. Dorsey Wright & Associates purchased a new position in shares of Newpark Resources in the third quarter worth $32,000. New York State Teachers Retirement System bought a new position in shares of Newpark Resources during the first quarter valued at about $50,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its holdings in Newpark Resources by 179.1% in the 1st quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 7,404 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 4,751 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new position in shares of Newpark Resources during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on NR. Roth Capital reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Newpark Resources in a research note on Friday, March 8th. B. Riley began coverage on shares of Newpark Resources in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $10.00 price target for the company. Roth Mkm started coverage on Newpark Resources in a report on Friday, March 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $10.00 target price on the stock. TheStreet cut Newpark Resources from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Newpark Resources from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $10.75.

About Newpark Resources

Newpark Resources, Inc provides products, rentals, and services primarily to the oil and natural gas exploration and production (E&P) industry. It operates through two segments, Fluids Systems and Industrial Solutions. The Fluids Systems segment provides drilling, completion, and stimulation fluids products and related technical services to customers primarily in the North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, as well as other countries in the Asia Pacific and Latin America.