Short Interest in Patterson Companies, Inc. (NASDAQ:PDCO) Rises By 17.1%

Patterson Companies, Inc. (NASDAQ:PDCO) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,360,000 shares, a growth of 17.1% from the October 15th total of 2,870,000 shares. Approximately 4.3% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 849,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.0 days.

Patterson Companies Price Performance

PDCO stock traded up $0.18 during trading on Friday, hitting $19.75. 769,318 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 825,478. The stock has a market cap of $1.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.02. Patterson Companies has a one year low of $19.45 and a one year high of $32.58. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $21.05 and a 200 day simple moving average of $23.23.

Patterson Companies (NASDAQ:PDCO) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The company reported $0.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $1.54 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.59 billion. Patterson Companies had a net margin of 2.58% and a return on equity of 19.87%. The business’s revenue was down 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.40 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Patterson Companies will post 2.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Patterson Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 16th were paid a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 18th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.27%. Patterson Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 56.83%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of Patterson Companies from $30.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Patterson Companies from $29.00 to $26.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on Patterson Companies from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. UBS Group cut their price target on Patterson Companies from $27.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price objective on Patterson Companies from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $28.30.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. LRI Investments LLC raised its position in Patterson Companies by 201.2% in the 2nd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 1,262 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 843 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. lifted its stake in shares of Patterson Companies by 1,376.1% during the second quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 1,609 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 1,500 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new position in Patterson Companies in the second quarter valued at about $41,000. Family Firm Inc. acquired a new stake in Patterson Companies in the second quarter worth about $45,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Patterson Companies during the 2nd quarter worth about $45,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.43% of the company’s stock.

Patterson Companies Company Profile

Patterson Companies, Inc engages in the distribution of dental and animal health products in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada. The company operates through three segments: Dental, Animal Health, and Corporate segments. The Dental segment offers consumable products, including infection control, restorative materials, and instruments; basic and advanced technology and dental equipment; practice optimization solutions, such as practice management software, e-commerce, revenue cycle management, patient engagement solutions, and clinical and patient education systems.