Perrigo Company plc (NYSE:PRGO) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Perrigo Company plc (NYSE:PRGO) was the target of a large growth in short interest in June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 5,150,000 shares, a growth of 25.3% from the May 31st total of 4,110,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,490,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.5 days.

Perrigo Price Performance

Shares of PRGO traded down $0.26 on Tuesday, hitting $25.99. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,115,774 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,753,148. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $28.70 and a 200 day moving average price of $30.47. Perrigo has a fifty-two week low of $24.82 and a fifty-two week high of $40.28. The company has a market capitalization of $3.54 billion, a PE ratio of -373.57 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.81 and a quick ratio of 1.08.

Perrigo (NYSE:PRGO) last released its earnings results on Saturday, May 4th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.06. Perrigo had a positive return on equity of 6.96% and a negative net margin of 0.17%. The firm had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.09 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.45 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Perrigo will post 2.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Perrigo Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 31st were paid a $0.276 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 31st. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.25%. Perrigo’s dividend payout ratio is -1,571.43%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on PRGO shares. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $42.00 price target on shares of Perrigo in a research note on Friday, April 12th. StockNews.com upgraded Perrigo from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their price objective on Perrigo from $39.00 to $36.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 13th.

Insider Activity at Perrigo

In other Perrigo news, EVP Svend Andersen purchased 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 28th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $27.90 per share, with a total value of $27,900.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 101,853 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,841,698.70. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Perrigo

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new position in Perrigo in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its stake in shares of Perrigo by 1,694.8% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,041 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 983 shares in the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Perrigo during the fourth quarter worth approximately $37,000. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division acquired a new stake in shares of Perrigo during the 1st quarter worth $48,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in Perrigo by 34.5% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,556 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 399 shares in the last quarter. 95.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Perrigo

Perrigo Company plc provides over-the-counter health and wellness solutions to enhance individual well-being in the United States, Europe, and internationally. It operates through Consumer Self-Care Americas and Consumer Self-Care International segments. The company develops, manufactures, markets, and distributes self-care consumer products, such as upper respiratory products, including cough suppressants, expectorants, and sinus and allergy relief; nutrition products consisting of infant formulas and nutritional beverages; digestive health products, including antacids, anti-diarrheal, and anti-heartburn; pain and sleep-aids products comprising pain relievers and fever reducers; and oral care products, which include toothbrushes, toothbrush replacement heads, floss, flossers, whitening products, and toothbrush covers.