Two Sigma Advisers LP Acquires 15,000 Shares of Carriage Services, Inc. (NYSE:CSV)

Two Sigma Advisers LP grew its stake in Carriage Services, Inc. (NYSE:CSV - Free Report) by 15.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 115,100 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 15,000 shares during the period. Two Sigma Advisers LP owned about 0.76% of Carriage Services worth $4,587,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Point72 Asset Management L.P. lifted its holdings in Carriage Services by 94.6% in the 4th quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 9,142 shares of the company's stock valued at $364,000 after purchasing an additional 4,445 shares in the last quarter. Man Group plc increased its position in shares of Carriage Services by 36.5% during the 4th quarter. Man Group plc now owns 15,114 shares of the company's stock worth $602,000 after purchasing an additional 4,045 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Carriage Services by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 135,579 shares of the company's stock worth $5,403,000 after purchasing an additional 1,301 shares during the last quarter. Group One Trading LLC increased its position in shares of Carriage Services by 17,500.0% during the 4th quarter. Group One Trading LLC now owns 17,424 shares of the company's stock worth $694,000 after purchasing an additional 17,325 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in Carriage Services by 16.6% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 37,250 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,484,000 after acquiring an additional 5,296 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 66.46% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, President Steven D. Metzger sold 2,492 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.01, for a total transaction of $99,704.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now owns 78,897 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,156,668.97. The trade was a 3.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders sold a total of 9,000 shares of company stock valued at $362,141 over the last 90 days. 2.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Barrington Research reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $50.00 price objective on shares of Carriage Services in a research report 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 reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $51.00 target price (up previously from $48.00) on shares of Carriage Services in a report on Friday, May 2nd.

Carriage Services Stock Performance

Carriage Services stock remained flat at $43.42 during midday trading on Friday. The company had a trading volume of 13,834 shares, compared to its average volume of 125,291. Carriage Services, Inc. has a 1 year low of $25.84 and a 1 year high of $44.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $681.39 million, a P/E ratio of 19.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.93. The company's 50-day moving average is $40.03 and its 200-day moving average is $39.90. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03.

Carriage Services (NYSE:CSV - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $104.17 million. On average, analysts forecast that Carriage Services, Inc. will post 2.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Carriage Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, May 5th will be paid a $0.1125 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 5th. This represents a $0.45 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.04%. Carriage Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.05%.

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.