Carriage Services, Inc. (NYSE:CSV) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Carriage Services, Inc. (NYSE:CSV) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 276,900 shares, an increase of 32.2% from the August 15th total of 209,400 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 115,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.4 days. Approximately 2.2% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on CSV. Barrington Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $38.00 target price on shares of Carriage Services in a research report on Tuesday, May 28th. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 target price (up from $32.00) on shares of Carriage Services in a report on Friday, August 2nd.

Carriage Services Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:CSV traded down $0.09 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $32.93. 113,425 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 110,427. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $30.96 and a 200-day moving average price of $27.90. Carriage Services has a 12 month low of $18.06 and a 12 month high of $35.00. The company has a market cap of $500.87 million, a PE ratio of 16.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.14, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.69.

Carriage Services (NYSE:CSV) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $0.63 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.10. Carriage Services had a return on equity of 21.99% and a net margin of 7.47%. The company had revenue of $102.32 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $94.40 million. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Carriage Services will post 2.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Carriage Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 5th were paid a $0.1125 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 5th. This represents a $0.45 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.37%. Carriage Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.17%.

Insider Transactions at Carriage Services

In other news, VP Shawn R. Phillips sold 7,101 shares of Carriage Services stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.00, for a total value of $213,030.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 90,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,721,000. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Carriage Services news, VP Shawn R. Phillips sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.73, for a total transaction of $148,650.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 97,801 shares in the company, valued at $2,907,623.73. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Shawn R. Phillips sold 7,101 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.00, for a total value of $213,030.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 90,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,721,000. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 13,544 shares of company stock valued at $401,074. Corporate insiders own 12.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Carriage Services

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Point72 DIFC Ltd increased its stake in shares of Carriage Services by 613.0% during the second quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd now owns 1,861 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 1,600 shares during the period. Maven Securities LTD bought a new stake in shares of Carriage Services during the second quarter valued at approximately $398,000. Deerfield Management Company L.P. Series C lifted its stake in Carriage Services by 198.0% during the 2nd quarter. Deerfield Management Company L.P. Series C now owns 53,584 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,438,000 after acquiring an additional 35,605 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in Carriage Services by 9.2% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 15,134 shares of the company’s stock worth $406,000 after purchasing an additional 1,279 shares during the period. Finally, AXA S.A. purchased a new stake in Carriage Services during the second quarter valued at $932,000. 66.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Carriage Services

Carriage Services, Inc provides funeral and cemetery services, and merchandise in the United States. It operates in two segments, Funeral Home Operations and Cemetery Operations. The Funeral Home Operations segment provides consultation services; funeral home facilities for visitation and memorial services; transportation services; removal and preparation of remains; sale of caskets and urns; cremation services; and related funeral merchandise.