Conn's Post-Earnings Plunge Triggers Short-Sale Restriction

Short sellers are temporarily blocked from one of their recent favorite targets

Shares of Conn's Inc (NASDAQ:CONN) have reversed their premarket gains, last seen down 6.3% at $22.36, after the company reported a fourth-quarter earnings beat, but fell short of revenue expectations as same-store sales declined 1.4% for the period. Today's post-earnings plunge has CONN stock retreating from a test of resistance at its overhead 120-day moving average, which hasn't been bested on a daily closing basis since Oct. 9.

As of last night's close, all six analysts covering CONN held "strong buy" recommendations. This sentiment is echoed within the stock's average 12-month price target of $36, which represents more than 50% upside to current levels. Given the equity's sharp reversal, any bearish notes from this group could spark additional selling pressure on the retailer's shares.

Lastly, short interest surged 33.2% during the two most recent reporting periods on CONN, and now represents a healthy 27.2% of the stock's total available float. However, with the shares down more than 10% at their early lows of the session, bears are temporarily restricted from shorting CONN -- which means pessimistic players may turn their attention to the stock's put options in the short term.