Armstrong World Industries, Inc. (NYSE:AWI – Get Rating) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 895,500 shares, a growth of 41.1% from the August 31st total of 634,700 shares. Currently, 2.0% of the company's shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 272,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.3 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Armstrong World Industries

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. US Bancorp DE boosted its position in Armstrong World Industries by 402.7% in the second quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 367 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 294 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new stake in Armstrong World Industries in the second quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Exane Derivatives purchased a new stake in Armstrong World Industries in the first quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Van ECK Associates Corp purchased a new stake in Armstrong World Industries in the second quarter valued at approximately $97,000. Finally, AdvisorNet Financial Inc boosted its position in Armstrong World Industries by 33.5% in the first quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 1,155 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $104,000 after buying an additional 290 shares during the last quarter.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on AWI shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of Armstrong World Industries in a research note on Wednesday, August 17th. They set a "buy" rating and a $125.00 target price for the company. Loop Capital raised shares of Armstrong World Industries from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $95.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 15th. They noted that the move was a valuation call. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Armstrong World Industries from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Armstrong World Industries from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $93.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 13th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Armstrong World Industries from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $112.80.

Armstrong World Industries Stock Performance

Armstrong World Industries (NYSE:AWI – Get Rating) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 26th. The construction company reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.38 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $321.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $317.19 million. Armstrong World Industries had a return on equity of 41.11% and a net margin of 16.07%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 14.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.16 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Armstrong World Industries will post 5.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Armstrong World Industries Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 18th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 4th were paid a dividend of $0.231 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 3rd. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.17%. Armstrong World Industries's payout ratio is 23.06%.

About Armstrong World Industries

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Armstrong World Industries, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and sells ceiling systems primarily for use in the construction and renovation of residential and commercial buildings in the United States, Canada, and Latin America. The company operates through Mineral Fiber and Architectural Specialties segments.

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