BWX Technologies stock looks ripe for a short squeeze
BWX Technologies Inc (NYSE:BWXT) stock scored a price-target hike from BofA Global Research to $160 from $115 earlier today. The equity was last seen up 0.6% to trade at $132.88, and earlier hit a fresh record high of $136.31.
On the charts, support at the 40-day moving average has been in place since September, and captured the shares' early-November pullback. On track for its sixth-straight daily win, the equity is up 72.9% year to date.
There's still plenty of room for optimism amongst the brokerage bunch, with 13 of the 24 in coverage still sporting a "hold" or worse rating. Plus, the 12-month consensus target price of $131.91 is in line with current estimates, indicating upgrades and/or price-target hikes could be in store.
A short squeeze could also come into play. Short interest rose 10.4% during the last two reporting periods, and the 135.07 million shares sold short now make up a massive 18.2% of the stock's available float. This represents more than five day's worth of pent-up buying power.
Options traders lean bullish. Over at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), BWXT's 50-day call/put volume ratio of 3.73 sits higher than all readings from the past year, signaling long-term optimism