Edwards Lifesciences Co. (NYSE:EW) Short Interest Up 54.9% in December

Edwards Lifesciences Co. (NYSE:EW) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 11,310,000 shares, an increase of 54.9% from the December 15th total of 7,300,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 5,040,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.2 days. Currently, 2.0% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Edwards Lifesciences Trading Down 0.1 %

NYSE:EW traded down $0.09 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $69.77. 5,031,232 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,230,130. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.07, a P/E/G ratio of 3.77 and a beta of 1.11. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $71.99 and its 200-day moving average is $71.60. Edwards Lifesciences has a 12-month low of $58.93 and a 12-month high of $96.12. The company has a current ratio of 3.46, a quick ratio of 2.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

Edwards Lifesciences (NYSE:EW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The medical research company reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.67. The business had revenue of $1.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.57 billion. Edwards Lifesciences had a net margin of 70.82% and a return on equity of 20.76%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.59 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Edwards Lifesciences will post 2.56 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EW has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Edwards Lifesciences from $81.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Edwards Lifesciences from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Bank of America upgraded shares of Edwards Lifesciences from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $82.00 to $90.00 in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $70.00 price target on shares of Edwards Lifesciences in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on Edwards Lifesciences from $73.00 to $68.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Edwards Lifesciences currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $78.48.

Insider Buying and Selling at Edwards Lifesciences

In other Edwards Lifesciences news, VP Daniel J. Lippis sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.08, for a total value of $185,200.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 23,189 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,717,841.12. This trade represents a 9.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Donald E. Bobo, Jr. sold 5,000 shares of Edwards Lifesciences stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.57, for a total transaction of $327,850.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 46,936 shares in the company, valued at $3,077,593.52. This represents a 9.63 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 33,000 shares of company stock valued at $2,195,180. 1.27% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Edwards Lifesciences

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Edwards Lifesciences during the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Edwards Lifesciences during the third quarter valued at $32,000. Avior Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Edwards Lifesciences by 138.7% during the third quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 530 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 308 shares during the period. Peoples Bank KS bought a new stake in shares of Edwards Lifesciences in the third quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, Roble Belko & Company Inc purchased a new stake in Edwards Lifesciences in the fourth quarter worth about $46,000. 79.46% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Edwards Lifesciences

Edwards Lifesciences Corporation provides products and technologies for structural heart disease and critical care monitoring in the United States, Europe, Japan, and internationally. It offers transcatheter heart valve replacement products for the minimally invasive replacement of aortic heart valves under the Edwards SAPIEN family of valves system; and transcatheter heart valve repair and replacement products to treat mitral and tricuspid valve diseases under the PASCAL PRECISION and Cardioband names.