Keysight Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:KEYS) Short Interest Update

Keysight Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:KEYS) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,110,000 shares, a growth of 48.1% from the October 15th total of 2,100,000 shares. Approximately 1.8% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 1,060,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.9 days.

Keysight Technologies Price Performance

KEYS traded down $4.31 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $149.37. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,282,196 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,174,195. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $155.17 and its 200-day moving average price is $145.92. Keysight Technologies has a 12 month low of $119.72 and a 12 month high of $166.28. The stock has a market cap of $25.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.73, a P/E/G ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a current ratio of 2.05, a quick ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

Keysight Technologies (NYSE:KEYS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 20th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.22. Keysight Technologies had a net margin of 18.24% and a return on equity of 21.01%. The business had revenue of $1.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.04 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Keysight Technologies will post 5.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Keysight Technologies from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on shares of Keysight Technologies from $163.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 26th. Vertical Research assumed coverage on shares of Keysight Technologies in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $175.00 price objective on the stock. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of Keysight Technologies from $167.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Finally, Barclays raised shares of Keysight Technologies from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $158.00 to $180.00 in a research report on Monday, November 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Keysight Technologies presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $170.89.

Insider Transactions at Keysight Technologies

In related news, Director Richard P. Hamada sold 1,632 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.00, for a total value of $254,592.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 42,160 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,576,960. The trade was a 3.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Keysight Technologies

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. State Street Corp boosted its position in Keysight Technologies by 2.5% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,857,378 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $1,248,773,000 after purchasing an additional 194,294 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB grew its stake in shares of Keysight Technologies by 7.1% in the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 4,421,264 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $702,671,000 after buying an additional 292,372 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Keysight Technologies by 7.9% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,400,035 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $697,411,000 after purchasing an additional 323,235 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in Keysight Technologies by 352.6% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 3,160,879 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $494,299,000 after purchasing an additional 2,462,543 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital World Investors purchased a new position in Keysight Technologies in the first quarter valued at about $250,097,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.58% of the company’s stock.

Keysight Technologies Company Profile

Keysight Technologies, Inc provides electronic design and test solutions to commercial communications, networking, aerospace, defense and government, automotive, energy, semiconductor, electronic, and education industries in the Americas, Europe, and the Asia Pacific. The company operates in two segments, Communications Solutions Group and Electronic Industrial Solutions Group.