The Cooper Companies, Inc. (NASDAQ:COO) Short Interest Update

The Cooper Companies, Inc. (NASDAQ:COO) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,240,000 shares, an increase of 27.3% from the October 15th total of 1,760,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,140,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.0 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on COO shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Cooper Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Cooper Companies in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $115.00 price objective (up from $110.00) on shares of Cooper Companies in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Cooper Companies from $118.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Cooper Companies from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $117.00.

Cooper Companies Stock Performance

Shares of COO stock opened at $99.63 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $106.83 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $98.00. Cooper Companies has a one year low of $82.21 and a one year high of $112.38. The stock has a market cap of $19.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.99 and a quick ratio of 1.18.

Cooper Companies (NASDAQ:COO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The medical device company reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.05. Cooper Companies had a return on equity of 9.08% and a net margin of 9.45%. The business had revenue of $1 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $997.30 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.84 earnings per share. Cooper Companies’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Cooper Companies will post 3.65 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Agostino Ricupati sold 1,601 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.03, for a total value of $172,956.03. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,818 shares in the company, valued at $520,488.54. This represents a 24.94 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Albert G. White III sold 114,992 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.53, for a total value of $12,710,065.76. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 165,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,267,624.69. This trade represents a 41.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 256,373 shares of company stock valued at $27,637,427 over the last three months. Company insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Cooper Companies

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Cooper Companies during the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Cooper Companies during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Covestor Ltd boosted its stake in Cooper Companies by 305.9% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 276 shares of the medical device company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 208 shares during the period. Crewe Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Cooper Companies by 286.4% in the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 340 shares of the medical device company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tortoise Investment Management LLC increased its position in Cooper Companies by 75.4% during the 2nd quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 393 shares of the medical device company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 169 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 24.39% of the company’s stock.

About Cooper Companies

The Cooper Companies, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and markets contact lens wearers. The company operates in two segments, CooperVision and CooperSurgical. The CooperVision segment provides spherical lense, including lenses that correct near and farsightedness; and toric and multifocal lenses comprising lenses correcting vision challenges, such as astigmatism, presbyopia, and myopia in the Americas, Europe, Middle East, Africa, and Asia Pacific.