Koninklijke Philips N.V. (NYSE:PHG) Short Interest Update

Key Points

• Short interest rose 13.6% in April to 2,025,224 shares (about 0.2% of shares), giving a short-interest ratio of roughly 2.3 trading days based on average volume.
• Dividend increased to $1.013 per share from $0.89, with stockholders of record (and the ex-dividend date) on May 13 and the payment scheduled for June 3.
• Earnings beat last quarter — $0.70 EPS vs. $0.50 expected and $5.98B revenue vs. $5.03B consensus — but several analysts have recently downgraded the stock and the consensus rating is now "Hold."

Koninklijke Philips N.V. (NYSE:PHG - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totaling 2,025,224 shares, an increase of 13.6% from the March 31st total of 1,782,541 shares. Currently, 0.2% of the company's shares are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 862,013 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.3 days.

Koninklijke Philips Trading Up 3.1%

NYSE PHG opened at $26.38 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.32. The firm has a market cap of $25.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.89, a PEG ratio of 6.64 and a beta of 0.81. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $28.45 and a 200-day simple moving average of $28.43. Koninklijke Philips has a one year low of $21.95 and a one year high of $33.44.

Koninklijke Philips (NYSE:PHG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The technology company reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.50 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $5.98 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.03 billion. Koninklijke Philips had a net margin of 5.09% and a return on equity of 13.68%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Koninklijke Philips will post 1.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Koninklijke Philips Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed an annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 13th will be given a dividend of $1.013 per share. This is an increase from Koninklijke Philips's previous annual dividend of $0.89. This represents a dividend yield of 318.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 13th. Koninklijke Philips's dividend payout ratio is currently 81.13%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Koninklijke Philips from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Koninklijke Philips from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Koninklijke Philips from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, April 5th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold".

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Whipplewood Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Koninklijke Philips by 923.7% during the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 993 shares of the technology company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 896 shares during the period. Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Koninklijke Philips in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Koninklijke Philips in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC grew its position in shares of Koninklijke Philips by 179.6% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,272 shares of the technology company's stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 817 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Navalign LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Koninklijke Philips during the fourth quarter worth approximately $54,000. 13.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Koninklijke Philips Company Profile

Koninklijke Philips N.V. NYSE: PHG, commonly known as Philips, is a Dutch multinational company focused on health technology. Founded in Eindhoven in 1891, the company evolved from a diversified electronics manufacturer into a specialist in healthcare products, systems and services. Philips is legally registered in the Netherlands and operates globally, supplying equipment and solutions to hospitals, clinics, healthcare providers and consumers across Europe, the Americas and Asia.

Philips' principal activities center on medical technologies and personal health.

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