Short Interest in Amedisys, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMED) Grows By 37.8%

Amedisys, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMED) saw a significant increase in short interest during the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,260,000 shares, an increase of 37.8% from the October 15th total of 1,640,000 shares. Approximately 7.1% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 387,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 5.8 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Amedisys

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Alpine Associates Management Inc. raised its stake in Amedisys by 0.9% in the second quarter. Alpine Associates Management Inc. now owns 1,280,897 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $117,586,000 after buying an additional 11,000 shares in the last quarter. Westchester Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Amedisys by 9.5% in the 3rd quarter. Westchester Capital Management LLC now owns 1,118,802 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $107,976,000 after acquiring an additional 97,476 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Amedisys by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 567,105 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $54,746,000 after purchasing an additional 7,071 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Amedisys by 4.0% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 514,166 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $47,202,000 after purchasing an additional 19,660 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Calamos Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Amedisys by 11.6% in the second quarter. Calamos Advisors LLC now owns 397,347 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $36,476,000 after purchasing an additional 41,220 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.36% of the company’s stock.

Amedisys Trading Down 0.3 %

NASDAQ AMED opened at $90.05 on Friday. Amedisys has a 12 month low of $89.55 and a 12 month high of $98.95. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $96.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $95.80. The stock has a market cap of $2.95 billion, a PE ratio of 35.73, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a current ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

Amedisys (NASDAQ:AMED) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The health services provider reported $1.00 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by ($0.19). The company had revenue of $587.67 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $586.75 million. Amedisys had a return on equity of 12.20% and a net margin of 3.57%. Amedisys’s revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.98 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Amedisys will post 4.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $101.00 target price on shares of Amedisys in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of Amedisys from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $101.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $100.67.

Amedisys Company Profile

Amedisys, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides healthcare services in the United States. It operates through three segments: Home Health, Hospice, and High Acuity Care. The Home Health segment offers a range of services in the homes of individuals for the recovery of patients from surgery, chronic disability, or terminal illness, as well as prevents avoidable hospital readmissions through its skilled nurses; nursing services, rehabilitation therapists specialized in physical, speech, and occupational therapy; and social workers and aides for assisting its patients.