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

Carriage Services, Inc. (NYSE:CSV) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totalling 479,700 shares, a growth of 53.5% from the April 30th total of 312,500 shares. Approximately 3.7% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 123,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.9 days.

Carriage Services Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:CSV traded up $0.09 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $43.51. The stock had a trading volume of 62,827 shares, compared to its average volume of 112,960. The company has a current ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03. The firm has a market cap of $682.80 million, a PE ratio of 19.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.93. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $40.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $39.94. Carriage Services has a twelve month low of $25.84 and a twelve month high of $44.35.

Carriage Services (NYSE:CSV) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.80 by $0.16. Carriage Services had a net margin of 8.57% and a return on equity of 23.52%. The business had revenue of $8.47 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $104.17 million. On average, research analysts predict that Carriage Services will post 2.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Carriage Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, May 5th will be paid a $0.1125 dividend. This represents a $0.45 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 5th. Carriage Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on CSV. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Carriage Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, May 11th. Barrington Research reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $50.00 target price on shares of Carriage Services in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $51.00 price objective (up from $48.00) on shares of Carriage Services in a research report on Friday, May 2nd.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Carriage Services news, President Steven D. Metzger sold 2,492 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.01, for a total transaction of $99,704.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now directly owns 78,897 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,156,668.97. This trade represents a 3.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders have sold 9,000 shares of company stock valued at $362,141 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 2.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Carriage Services by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 8,223 shares of the company’s stock valued at $328,000 after purchasing an additional 246 shares in the last quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Carriage Services by 4.1% during the first quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,456 shares of the company’s stock valued at $250,000 after acquiring an additional 255 shares during the last quarter. Values First Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Carriage Services by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Values First Advisors Inc. now owns 17,498 shares of the company’s stock valued at $697,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Carriage Services by 4.0% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 8,090 shares of the company’s stock valued at $313,000 after purchasing an additional 312 shares during the period. Finally, Versor Investments LP raised its holdings in shares of Carriage Services by 6.3% during the fourth quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 8,387 shares of the company’s stock valued at $334,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.46% of the company’s stock.

Carriage Services Company Profile

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.