Aveanna Healthcare Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAH) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Key Points

• Aveanna Healthcare Holdings Inc. experienced a significant increase in short interest, rising by 115.9% in August, indicating growing bearish sentiment among investors.
• Approximately 87.96% of Aveanna's stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds, reflecting strong institutional interest in the company.
• Analysts have provided varied ratings, with three deeming the stock a Buy and two giving it a Hold rating, leading to an average consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a target price of $7.50.

Aveanna Healthcare Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAH - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant increase in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totaling 4,470,000 shares, an increase of 115.9% from the August 15th total of 2,070,000 shares. Approximately 10.0% of the company's shares are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,040,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.3 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,040,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.3 days. Approximately 10.0% of the company's shares are short sold.

Institutional Trading of Aveanna Healthcare

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Squarepoint Ops LLC raised its stake in shares of Aveanna Healthcare by 207.0% in the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 479,977 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,510,000 after acquiring an additional 323,656 shares during the period. Oxford Asset Management LLP purchased a new position in Aveanna Healthcare in the second quarter valued at about $64,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Aveanna Healthcare during the 2nd quarter valued at about $791,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in shares of Aveanna Healthcare by 1,208.6% during the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 47,215 shares of the company's stock valued at $247,000 after buying an additional 43,607 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in shares of Aveanna Healthcare by 172.0% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 143,405 shares of the company's stock valued at $750,000 after buying an additional 90,673 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.96% of the company's stock.

Aveanna Healthcare Trading Up 3.7%

Shares of Aveanna Healthcare stock traded up $0.30 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $8.38. The stock had a trading volume of 1,019,168 shares, compared to its average volume of 621,259. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $6.18 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $5.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 104.81 and a beta of 2.04. Aveanna Healthcare has a 1 year low of $3.67 and a 1 year high of $8.68.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AVAH has been the subject of several analyst reports. UBS Group upgraded Aveanna Healthcare from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $6.75 to $8.00 in a report on Tuesday, August 19th. Raymond James Financial upgraded Aveanna Healthcare from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $9.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, August 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Aveanna Healthcare from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their target price for the company from $6.00 to $10.00 in a research note on Thursday. Truist Financial dropped their target price on Aveanna Healthcare from $6.00 to $5.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Aveanna Healthcare from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $6.25 to $6.00 in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Aveanna Healthcare has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $7.92.

Aveanna Healthcare Company Profile

Aveanna Healthcare Holdings Inc, a diversified home care platform company, provides pediatric and adult healthcare services in the United States. Its patient-centered care delivery platform allows patients to remain in their homes and minimizes the overutilization of high-cost care settings, such as hospitals or skilled nursing facilities.