Sampo PLC (OTCMKTS:SAXPY) Stock Short Interest Declines 48.8%

Key Points

• Short interest in Sampo fell 48.8%, declining to 6,198 shares as of October 15 from 12,108 shares on September 30. Shorted shares represented 0.0% of the outstanding stock, with a days-to-cover ratio of 0.0.
• Sampo shares opened at $21.18, near their 50-day moving average, while the company reported quarterly EPS of $0.33—below the $0.38 analyst consensus—despite revenue of $3.67 billion exceeding expectations.
• Analyst sentiment is generally positive: Goldman Sachs upgraded Sampo from “sell” to “buy,” and the stock carries a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy.”

Sampo PLC (OTCMKTS:SAXPY - Get Free Report) was the target of a large drop in short interest in October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totaling 6,198 shares, a drop of 48.8% from the September 30th total of 12,108 shares. Currently, 0.0% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 291,743 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.0 days.

Sampo Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of SAXPY opened at $21.18 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. Sampo has a 12-month low of $19.35 and a 12-month high of $24.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $112.49 billion, a PE ratio of 16.61 and a beta of 0.38. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $21.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $21.42.

Sampo (OTCMKTS:SAXPY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 12th. The financial services provider reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.38 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $3.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.96 billion. As a group, research analysts predict that Sampo will post 1.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Sampo from a "sell" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

About Sampo

Sampo Oyj is a Finnish insurance group headquartered in Helsinki. The company focuses on property and casualty insurance, serving private individuals, businesses and institutional customers across the Nordic countries, the Baltic region and the United Kingdom.

Sampo's principal operations include If P&C Insurance, one of the largest non-life insurers in the Nordic region, and Hastings, a specialist provider of motor and home insurance in the United Kingdom. The group has also expanded its presence in Denmark through Topdanmark, which offers property, casualty and life insurance products to retail and commercial customers.

Sampo traces its roots to Finland and has developed from a broader financial-services group into a focused insurance business.

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