Short Interest in Vipshop Holdings Limited (NYSE:VIPS) Grows By 42.2%

Vipshop Holdings Limited (NYSE:VIPS) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 8,730,000 shares, an increase of 42.2% from the February 28th total of 6,140,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 3,540,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.5 days. Approximately 2.0% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vipshop

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in VIPS. Atomi Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Vipshop by 10.8% during the fourth quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 12,241 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $165,000 after buying an additional 1,191 shares in the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Vipshop by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 25,900 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $349,000 after acquiring an additional 1,400 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of Vipshop by 17.5% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 9,972 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $134,000 after acquiring an additional 1,487 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Vipshop by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 44,100 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $594,000 after acquiring an additional 1,500 shares during the period. Finally, Lester Murray Antman dba SimplyRich increased its stake in shares of Vipshop by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Lester Murray Antman dba SimplyRich now owns 151,159 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,036,000 after purchasing an additional 1,526 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 48.82% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on VIPS. Citigroup downgraded shares of Vipshop from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $18.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Vipshop from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Vipshop from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $15.30.

Vipshop Stock Down 2.2 %

Shares of NYSE:VIPS traded down $0.34 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $15.34. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,202,382 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,833,946. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.87 billion, a PE ratio of 7.34, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.30. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $15.59 and a 200 day moving average of $14.63. Vipshop has a twelve month low of $11.50 and a twelve month high of $17.94.

Vipshop (NYSE:VIPS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The technology company reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.70 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $4.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.82 billion. Vipshop had a return on equity of 20.89% and a net margin of 7.50%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Vipshop will post 1.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vipshop Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed an annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be given a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 11th. This represents a yield of 2.9%. Vipshop’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.24%.

Vipshop Company Profile

Vipshop Holdings Limited operates online platforms in the People's Republic of China. It operates in Vip.com, Shan Shan Outlets, and Others segments. The company offers womenswear, menswear, sportswear and sporting goods, shoes and bags, accessories, baby and children products, skincare and cosmetics, home goods and other lifestyle products, and supermarket products.