Short Interest in IHS Holding Limited (NYSE:IHS) Declines By 24.7%

Key Points

• Short interest fell 24.7% — short interest dropped to 541,730 shares as of March 31 (about 0.2% of the company's stock) with a short-interest ratio of 0.3 days based on average volume.
• Two executive VPs sold stock under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans on April 7 to cover tax withholding (Mohamad Darwish sold 27,972 shares at $8.24; Stephen J. Howden sold 49,212 shares at $8.25), and insiders have sold 344,017 shares over the past three months, leaving insiders with 1.10% ownership.
• IHS shares traded near $8.26 (52-week range $4.68–$8.95) with a $2.77B market cap and P/E of 20.13; analysts' consensus is a Hold rating with a $9.61 average price target and an expected -5.58 EPS for the fiscal year.

IHS Holding Limited (NYSE:IHS - Get Free Report) saw a significant decline in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 541,730 shares, a decline of 24.7% from the March 15th total of 719,283 shares. Approximately 0.2% of the company's stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 1,711,185 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.3 days.

IHS Stock Up 0.1%

IHS stock traded up $0.01 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $8.26. 465,162 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,897,628. IHS has a 52-week low of $4.68 and a 52-week high of $8.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.13 and a beta of 0.81. The business's 50-day moving average price is $8.17 and its 200-day moving average price is $7.48. The company has a quick ratio of 2.05, a current ratio of 2.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 96.14.

IHS (NYSE:IHS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Saturday, February 14th. The business services provider reported ($0.23) earnings per share for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $397.80 million for the quarter. IHS had a negative return on equity of 661.41% and a net margin of 8.12%. On average, research analysts expect that IHS will post -5.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at IHS

In other news, EVP Mohamad Darwish sold 27,972 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.24, for a total transaction of $230,489.28. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 299,400 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,467,056. The trade was a 8.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, EVP Stephen J. Howden sold 49,212 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.25, for a total transaction of $405,999.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 314,912 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,598,024. The trade was a 13.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold a total of 344,017 shares of company stock valued at $2,826,243 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in IHS during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in IHS during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Quarry LP increased its holdings in IHS by 545.3% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 4,704 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 3,975 shares during the period. Olympiad Research LP bought a new stake in IHS during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $74,000. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC bought a new stake in IHS during the 4th quarter worth approximately $90,000. 17.54% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

IHS has been the subject of several recent research reports. TD Cowen downgraded shares of IHS from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $17.00 to $8.50 in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Williams Trading set a $8.50 price target on shares of IHS in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Zacks Research cut shares of IHS from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. New Street Research cut shares of IHS from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of IHS from a "hold (c)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a report on Monday, March 23rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, IHS presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $9.61.

About IHS

IHS Inc develops source of information, insight and analytics in different areas of business. The Company's segments include Resources, Transportation and Consolidated Markets & Solutions. The Company's Resources segment includes its Energy and Chemicals product offerings. Its Transportation segment includes its Automotive; Maritime & Trade, and Aerospace, Defense & Security product offerings. Its Consolidated Markets & Solutions segment includes its Product Design; Technology, Media & Telecom, and Economics & Country Risk product offerings.

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