Carriage Services (NYSE:CSV) Hits New 52-Week High - Here's Why

Shares of Carriage Services, Inc. (NYSE:CSV - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $44.45 and last traded at $44.36, with a volume of 54243 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $43.62.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CSV has been the topic of several analyst reports. Barrington Research reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $50.00 target price on shares of Carriage Services in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Carriage Services from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday, May 11th. Finally, Roth Mkm reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $51.00 target price (up from $48.00) on shares of Carriage Services in a report on Friday, May 2nd.

Carriage Services Stock Up 0.2%

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's 50 day simple moving average is $40.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $40.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $702.42 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.93.

Carriage Services (NYSE:CSV - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $8.47 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $104.17 million. Equities analysts expect that Carriage Services, Inc. will post 2.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Carriage Services Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Carriage Services news, President Steven D. Metzger sold 3,508 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were 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 owns 81,389 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,262,885.01. The trade was a 4.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 9,000 shares of company stock valued at $362,141. Company insiders own 2.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Carriage Services

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in Carriage Services by 27.5% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 8,042 shares of the company's stock valued at $320,000 after purchasing an additional 1,736 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its position in Carriage Services by 14.2% in the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 149,949 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,975,000 after acquiring an additional 18,661 shares during the period. Values First Advisors Inc. increased its position in Carriage Services by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Values First Advisors Inc. now owns 17,498 shares of the company's stock valued at $697,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers increased its position in shares of Carriage Services by 60.8% during the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 32,226 shares of the company's stock worth $1,284,000 after buying an additional 12,180 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Carriage Services by 8.8% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 7,700 shares of the company's stock worth $307,000 after buying an additional 624 shares during the period. Institutional investors 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.