Short Interest in Smith & Nephew plc (NYSE:SNN) Increases By 22.9%

Smith & Nephew plc (NYSE:SNN - Get Free Report) saw a large increase in short interest in the month of May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,880,000 shares, an increase of 22.9% from the April 30th total of 1,530,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 873,900 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.2 days. Currently, 0.4% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Smith & Nephew Trading Up 3.5%

SNN stock traded up $1.03 during trading on Thursday, hitting $30.30. The company had a trading volume of 897,246 shares, compared to its average volume of 792,059. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $27.54 and a 200-day moving average price of $26.61. Smith & Nephew has a 12 month low of $23.69 and a 12 month high of $31.72. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The stock has a market cap of $13.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.03, a PEG ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.68.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SNN has been the subject of several analyst reports. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their target price on Smith & Nephew from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. HSBC downgraded shares of Smith & Nephew from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of Smith & Nephew from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Smith & Nephew from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, UBS Group lowered shares of Smith & Nephew from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $28.00.

Institutional Trading of Smith & Nephew

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SNN. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in Smith & Nephew by 26.0% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 5,871 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $144,000 after purchasing an additional 1,213 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Smith & Nephew in the 4th quarter worth $41,000. Bleakley Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Smith & Nephew by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 17,704 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $435,000 after purchasing an additional 596 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in shares of Smith & Nephew by 111.2% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 9,240 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $227,000 after purchasing an additional 4,865 shares during the period. Finally, ABC Arbitrage SA acquired a new position in Smith & Nephew in the fourth quarter valued at about $4,847,000. 25.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Smith & Nephew

Smith & Nephew plc engages in the development, manufacture, marketing, and sale of medical devices. It operates through the following segments: Orthopaedics, Sports Medicine and ENT, and Advanced Wound Management. The Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine and ENT segment consists of the following businesses: knee implants, hip implants, other reconstruction, trauma, sports medicine joint repair, arthroscopic enabling technologies, and ENT.