Haemonetics Co. (NYSE:HAE) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Haemonetics Co. (NYSE:HAE) saw a large increase in short interest during the month of February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,830,000 shares, an increase of 30.3% from the January 31st total of 5,240,000 shares. Approximately 13.8% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 792,300 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 8.6 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price objective on shares of Haemonetics from $112.00 to $108.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. Raymond James reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $115.00 price target (down from $120.00) on shares of Haemonetics in a report on Friday, February 7th. Barrington Research reduced their price objective on Haemonetics from $108.00 to $95.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Bank of America downgraded Haemonetics from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $95.00 to $68.00 in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, JMP Securities reduced their price target on Haemonetics from $125.00 to $100.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $101.67.

Haemonetics Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HAE traded up $0.86 on Tuesday, hitting $65.94. The company had a trading volume of 1,214,889 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,031,906. The company has a current ratio of 3.97, a quick ratio of 2.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35. The company has a market cap of $3.31 billion, a PE ratio of 25.96, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.39. Haemonetics has a 52-week low of $58.80 and a 52-week high of $97.97. The business has a 50 day moving average of $70.38 and a 200 day moving average of $75.89.

Haemonetics (NYSE:HAE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by ($0.01). Haemonetics had a net margin of 9.47% and a return on equity of 23.66%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Haemonetics will post 4.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Haemonetics

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Global Alpha Capital Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Haemonetics in the 3rd quarter valued at about $806,000. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P increased its holdings in Haemonetics by 8.1% in the third quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 163,856 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $13,171,000 after buying an additional 12,310 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in Haemonetics by 174.5% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 16,949 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,362,000 after buying an additional 10,774 shares in the last quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP lifted its holdings in Haemonetics by 10.9% during the 3rd quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 823,663 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $66,206,000 after buying an additional 80,783 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Boston Trust Walden Corp grew its position in shares of Haemonetics by 13.1% in the 4th quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 915,722 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $71,500,000 after acquiring an additional 106,114 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.67% of the company’s stock.

About Haemonetics

Haemonetics Corporation, a healthcare company, provides suite of medical products and solutions in the United States and internationally. The company offers automated plasma collection systems, donor management software, and supporting software solutions including NexSys PCS and PCS2 plasmapheresis equipment and related disposables and solutions, as well as integrated information technology platforms for plasma customers to manage their donors, operations, and supply chain; and NexLynk DMS donor management system and Donor360 app.