Viavi Solutions Inc. (NASDAQ:VIAV) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Viavi Solutions Inc. (NASDAQ:VIAV) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 5,780,000 shares, an increase of 38.9% from the January 31st total of 4,160,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,990,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.9 days. Approximately 2.6% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Viavi Solutions Trading Up 1.4 %

NASDAQ VIAV traded up $0.16 on Wednesday, hitting $11.15. 551,620 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,277,367. Viavi Solutions has a 52-week low of $6.60 and a 52-week high of $12.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 3.55 and a quick ratio of 3.18. The company has a market capitalization of $2.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -61.96 and a beta of 0.92. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $10.97 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $9.93.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on VIAV. Needham & Company LLC raised Viavi Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $15.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and set a $13.00 target price (up previously from $12.00) on shares of Viavi Solutions in a report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com cut Viavi Solutions from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Argus boosted their target price on Viavi Solutions from $13.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Viavi Solutions from $9.50 to $10.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $12.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at Viavi Solutions

In other news, SVP Luke M. Scrivanich sold 2,802 shares of Viavi Solutions stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.43, for a total transaction of $29,224.86. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 54,517 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $568,612.31. The trade was a 4.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Masood Jabbar sold 30,000 shares of Viavi Solutions stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.01, for a total value of $300,300.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 180,333 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,805,133.33. This trade represents a 14.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.52% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viavi Solutions

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of Viavi Solutions during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management grew its holdings in shares of Viavi Solutions by 35.0% during the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 3,212 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 833 shares in the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Viavi Solutions by 804.6% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 6,938 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 6,171 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Viavi Solutions during the 4th quarter valued at $75,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Viavi Solutions by 836.2% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 8,323 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $84,000 after acquiring an additional 7,434 shares in the last quarter. 95.54% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Viavi Solutions

Viavi Solutions, Inc engages in the provision of network test, monitoring, and assurance solutions for communications service providers, enterprises, network equipment manufacturers, government and avionics. It operates through the following segments: Network Enablement, Service Enablement, and Optical Security and Performance.