Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA (NYSE:FMS) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA (NYSE:FMS) saw a large decline in short interest during the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totaling 891,600 shares, a decline of 40.2% from the September 15th total of 1,490,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 308,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.9 days. Approximately 0.2% of the company’s stock are sold short. Approximately 0.2% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 308,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.9 days.

Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:FMS opened at $27.01 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $25.68 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $26.34. Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA has a 52-week low of $18.94 and a 52-week high of $30.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 1.08.

Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA (NYSE:FMS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.50 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $5.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5 billion. Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA had a net margin of 3.39% and a return on equity of 6.75%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA will post 1.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on FMS. Weiss Ratings raised Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Bank of America cut Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. Zacks Research upgraded Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 6th. UBS Group cut shares of Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA from a “sell” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $27.80.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of FMS. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA by 34.0% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 9,603 shares of the company’s stock worth $239,000 after purchasing an additional 2,439 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC increased its position in Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA by 22.4% in the first quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 39,903 shares of the company’s stock worth $994,000 after buying an additional 7,299 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE raised its stake in shares of Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA by 225.5% in the second quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 75,660 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,162,000 after buying an additional 52,418 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund purchased a new stake in Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA in the 1st quarter worth approximately $164,000. Finally, Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA by 243.3% during the 1st quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,817 shares of the company’s stock worth $195,000 after acquiring an additional 5,540 shares during the period. 8.37% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA Company Profile

Fresenius Medical Care AG provides dialysis and related services for individuals with renal diseases in Germany, North America, and internationally. The company offers dialysis treatment and related laboratory and diagnostic services through a network of outpatient dialysis clinics; materials, training, and patient support services comprising clinical monitoring, follow-up assistance, and arranging for delivery of the supplies to the patient's residence; and dialysis services under contract to hospitals in the United States for the hospitalized end-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients and for patients suffering from acute kidney failure.