Dolby Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:DLB) Short Interest Up 20.9% in September

Dolby Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:DLB) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 800,400 shares, an increase of 20.9% from the August 31st total of 662,300 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 499,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.6 days. Currently, 1.4% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Dolby Laboratories Price Performance

NYSE:DLB traded up $0.92 on Monday, reaching $76.53. The stock had a trading volume of 494,811 shares, compared to its average volume of 418,481. The company has a market cap of $7.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.05 and a beta of 0.97. Dolby Laboratories has a 12-month low of $66.35 and a 12-month high of $90.06. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $72.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $77.89.

Dolby Laboratories (NYSE:DLB) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The electronics maker reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $288.82 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $286.26 million. Dolby Laboratories had a net margin of 16.87% and a return on equity of 10.66%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Dolby Laboratories will post 2.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Dolby Laboratories Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 27th. Investors of record on Monday, August 19th were paid a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 19th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.57%. Dolby Laboratories’s payout ratio is currently 61.22%.

Dolby Laboratories declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, August 7th that authorizes the company to buyback $350.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the electronics maker to buy up to 5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Barrington Research reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $100.00 price objective on shares of Dolby Laboratories in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Rosenblatt Securities reissued a “buy” rating and set a $98.00 price target on shares of Dolby Laboratories in a research report on Friday, June 7th.

Institutional Trading of Dolby Laboratories

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Dolby Laboratories by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,502,463 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $544,711,000 after purchasing an additional 107,713 shares in the last quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd grew its stake in Dolby Laboratories by 2.6% during the second quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 2,344,963 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $185,791,000 after buying an additional 60,114 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in shares of Dolby Laboratories by 11.2% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,324,244 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $194,702,000 after acquiring an additional 233,958 shares in the last quarter. Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN raised its stake in shares of Dolby Laboratories by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN now owns 1,402,623 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $111,130,000 after acquiring an additional 10,852 shares during the period. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Dolby Laboratories by 3.5% during the 2nd quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 1,010,230 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $80,041,000 after acquiring an additional 33,848 shares in the last quarter. 58.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Dolby Laboratories Company Profile

Dolby Laboratories, Inc creates audio and imaging technologies that transform entertainment at the cinema, DTV transmissions and devices, mobile devices, OTT video and music services, home entertainment devices, and automobiles. The company develops and licenses its audio technologies, such as AAC & HE-AAC, a digital audio codec solution used for a range of media applications; AVC, a digital video codec with high bandwidth efficiency used in various media devices; Dolby AC-4, a digital audio coding technology that delivers new audio experiences to a range of playback devices; and Dolby Atmos technology for cinema and various media devices.