Carriage Services, Inc. (NYSE:CSV) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Carriage Services, Inc. (NYSE:CSV) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 270,200 shares, an increase of 11.7% from the August 15th total of 241,800 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 81,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.3 days. Currently, 2.1% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CSV. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its position in Carriage Services by 527.3% in the 1st quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 828 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 696 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Carriage Services by 98.5% during the first quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,179 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 585 shares during the period. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. increased its position in shares of Carriage Services by 107.8% during the fourth quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 2,342 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,000 after purchasing an additional 1,215 shares during the period. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd increased its position in shares of Carriage Services by 35.3% during the second quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd now owns 1,655 shares of the company’s stock valued at $66,000 after purchasing an additional 432 shares during the period. Finally, BNP Paribas Arbitrage SA increased its position in shares of Carriage Services by 34.7% during the second quarter. BNP Paribas Arbitrage SA now owns 3,853 shares of the company’s stock valued at $153,000 after purchasing an additional 993 shares during the period. 68.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Carriage Services Stock Performance

CSV traded down $0.57 on Monday, hitting $31.00. The company had a trading volume of 47,374 shares, compared to its average volume of 84,504. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $31.69 and its 200 day moving average price is $30.06. Carriage Services has a 1-year low of $22.71 and a 1-year high of $35.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.56, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.69. The stock has a market cap of $464.07 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.90.

Carriage Services (NYSE:CSV) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 2nd. The company reported $0.53 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $97.68 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $93.93 million. Carriage Services had a return on equity of 23.72% and a net margin of 8.33%. Equities analysts predict that Carriage Services will post 2.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Carriage Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 7th were given a $0.1125 dividend. This represents a $0.45 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.45%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 4th. Carriage Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.39%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Carriage Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 12th.

Carriage Services Company Profile

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