Carriage Services, Inc. (NYSE:CSV) Short Interest Up 53.5% in May

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

Insider Transactions at Carriage Services

In related news, President Steven D. Metzger sold 3,508 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.09, for a total value of $140,635.72. Following the completion of the sale, the president now directly owns 81,389 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,262,885.01. This represents a 4.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders sold a total of 9,000 shares of company stock worth $362,141 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 2.60% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Carriage Services

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of CSV. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in Carriage Services by 27.5% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 8,042 shares of the company's stock worth $320,000 after acquiring an additional 1,736 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Carriage Services during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Carriage Services during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,272,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its holdings in shares of Carriage Services by 14.2% during the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 149,949 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,975,000 after buying an additional 18,661 shares during the last quarter. Finally, 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 buying an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 66.46% of the company's stock.

Carriage Services Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of CSV stock traded down $0.01 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $44.67. 27,697 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 111,352. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 0.72. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $40.47 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $40.05. Carriage Services has a one year low of $25.84 and a one year high of $44.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $700.93 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.03, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.93.

Carriage Services (NYSE:CSV - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.16. Carriage Services had a net margin of 8.57% and a return on equity of 23.52%. The firm had revenue of $8.47 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $104.17 million. Sell-side analysts predict that Carriage Services will post 2.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Carriage Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 5th were issued a $0.1125 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 5th. This represents a $0.45 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.01%. Carriage Services's dividend payout ratio is currently 15.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Barrington Research restated an "outperform" rating and set a $50.00 target price on shares of Carriage Services in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen upgraded Carriage Services from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, May 11th. Finally, Roth Mkm restated a "buy" rating and set a $51.00 target price (up from $48.00) on shares of Carriage Services in a research note on Friday, May 2nd.

About Carriage Services

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.