Short Interest in Koninklijke Philips (NYSE:PHG) Rises By 18.0%

Koninklijke Philips (NYSE:PHG) was the target of a large increase in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 2,360,000 shares, an increase of 18.0% from the February 13th total of 2,000,000 shares. Approximately 0.3% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 723,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.3 days.

Koninklijke Philips Price Performance

NYSE PHG opened at $25.88 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $24.32 billion, a P/E ratio of -30.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.78. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $26.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $27.77. Koninklijke Philips has a fifty-two week low of $19.10 and a fifty-two week high of $32.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 0.74.

Koninklijke Philips (NYSE:PHG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The technology company reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.55 by ($0.01). Koninklijke Philips had a positive return on equity of 10.85% and a negative net margin of 3.88%. The company had revenue of $5.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.10 billion. On average, analysts anticipate that Koninklijke Philips will post 1.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Koninklijke Philips Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced an annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 13th will be issued a $0.886 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 13th. This represents a yield of 2.9%. Koninklijke Philips’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -89.29%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Koninklijke Philips

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Colonial Trust Co SC lifted its position in shares of Koninklijke Philips by 724.0% during the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 1,409 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 1,238 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of Koninklijke Philips in the third quarter worth $54,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in Koninklijke Philips by 37.1% during the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,150 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 582 shares during the period. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Koninklijke Philips during the 4th quarter valued at $55,000. Finally, Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new stake in Koninklijke Philips in the 4th quarter valued at $60,000. 13.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on PHG shares. UBS Group upgraded shares of Koninklijke Philips from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 20th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Koninklijke Philips from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Koninklijke Philips from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, March 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.

About Koninklijke Philips

Koninklijke Philips N.V. operates as a health technology company in North America, the Greater China, and internationally. The company operates through Diagnosis & Treatment Businesses, Connected Care Businesses, and Personal Health Businesses segments. It also provides diagnostic imaging solutions, includes magnetic resonance imaging, X-ray systems, and computed tomography (CT) systems and software comprising detector-based spectral CT solutions, as well as molecular and hybrid imaging solutions for nuclear medicine; echography solutions focused on diagnosis, treatment planning and guidance for cardiology, general imaging, obstetrics/gynecology, and point-of-care applications; integrated interventional systems, and interventional diagnostic and therapeutic devices to treat coronary artery and peripheral vascular disease.