Brookfield Asset Management Ltd. (NYSE:BAM) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Brookfield Asset Management Ltd. (NYSE:BAM) (TSE:BAM.A) saw a significant growth in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 13,660,000 shares, a growth of 26.7% from the February 13th total of 10,780,000 shares. Currently, 2.8% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 1,410,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 9.7 days.

Institutional Trading of Brookfield Asset Management

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BAM. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Brookfield Asset Management during the third quarter valued at $27,000. Truvestments Capital LLC grew its holdings in Brookfield Asset Management by 487.2% during the fourth quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 505 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 419 shares during the period. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. bought a new stake in Brookfield Asset Management during the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in Brookfield Asset Management by 1,606.3% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 819 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 771 shares during the period. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Brookfield Asset Management by 61.0% during the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 858 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 325 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.41% of the company’s stock.

Brookfield Asset Management Stock Performance

Shares of BAM stock traded up $0.57 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $48.51. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,427,897 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,298,975. Brookfield Asset Management has a 52-week low of $37.29 and a 52-week high of $62.61. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $55.59 and a 200 day moving average price of $53.12. The stock has a market cap of $21.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.75, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.50.

Brookfield Asset Management (NYSE:BAM) (TSE:BAM.A) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.01. Brookfield Asset Management had a return on equity of 81.16% and a net margin of 54.47%. Equities research analysts predict that Brookfield Asset Management will post 1.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Brookfield Asset Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $0.4375 per share. This represents a $1.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.61%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This is a boost from Brookfield Asset Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Brookfield Asset Management’s dividend payout ratio is 132.58%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BAM has been the topic of several research reports. Scotiabank dropped their price target on Brookfield Asset Management from $63.00 to $62.50 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. CIBC lifted their price target on Brookfield Asset Management from $63.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Brookfield Asset Management from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. UBS Group started coverage on Brookfield Asset Management in a report on Monday, December 16th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, TD Securities boosted their target price on Brookfield Asset Management from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Brookfield Asset Management presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $56.71.

About Brookfield Asset Management

Brookfield Asset Management Ltd. is a real estate investment firm specializing in alternative asset management services. Its renewable power and transition business includes the operates in the hydroelectric, wind, solar, distributed generation, and sustainable solution sector. The company's infrastructure business engages in the utilities, transport, midstream, and data infrastructure sectors.