HealthStream, Inc. (NASDAQ:HSTM) Short Interest Update

HealthStream, Inc. (NASDAQ:HSTM) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in the month of February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 1,318,705 shares, a growth of 37.9% from the January 29th total of 956,163 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 427,006 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.1 days. Currently, 5.6% of the company’s shares are short sold. Currently, 5.6% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 427,006 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.1 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HSTM has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup restated a “market perform” rating on shares of HealthStream in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Weiss Ratings downgraded HealthStream from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $25.00 price objective on HealthStream in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered HealthStream from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $25.00.

Insider Transactions at HealthStream

In other news, EVP Kevin P. O’hara sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.26, for a total value of $48,520.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 16,373 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $397,208.98. This represents a 10.89% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CTO Jeff Cunningham sold 2,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.09, for a total transaction of $50,589.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer directly owned 31,489 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $758,570.01. The trade was a 6.25% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 20.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On HealthStream

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of HSTM. Danske Bank A S grew its stake in shares of HealthStream by 175.0% in the fourth quarter. Danske Bank A S now owns 1,100 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 700 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its stake in HealthStream by 2,035.5% in the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,324 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 1,262 shares in the last quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in HealthStream in the 3rd quarter valued at about $40,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its position in shares of HealthStream by 241.4% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,407 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 1,702 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of HealthStream by 131.4% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,649 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $84,000 after purchasing an additional 2,072 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.58% of the company’s stock.

HealthStream Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of HealthStream stock traded up $0.14 on Monday, reaching $21.37. 280,800 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 353,535. The company has a market capitalization of $634.05 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.03, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.45. HealthStream has a one year low of $19.50 and a one year high of $34.13. The company has a 50-day moving average of $21.75 and a 200 day moving average of $24.76.

HealthStream (NASDAQ:HSTM) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 23rd. The technology company reported $0.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.16 by $0.02. HealthStream had a net margin of 6.03% and a return on equity of 5.98%. The business had revenue of $79.71 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $76.21 million. Analysts predict that HealthStream will post 0.63 earnings per share for the current year.

HealthStream announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, November 11th that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the technology company to purchase up to 1.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

HealthStream Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.035 per share. This is a boost from HealthStream’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.03. This represents a $0.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 9th. HealthStream’s dividend payout ratio is presently 19.67%.

About HealthStream

HealthStream, Inc is a Nashville, Tennessee–based provider of workforce development and learning management solutions for healthcare organizations. Since its founding in 1990, the company has focused on helping hospitals, clinics and other care providers streamline staff training, ensure regulatory compliance and monitor employee performance. HealthStream’s platform integrates online courses, skill competency assessments and credential management tools to support workforce readiness across the healthcare continuum.

The company’s core offerings include a learning management system (LMS) designed specifically for clinical and nonclinical personnel, a competency management suite that tracks skill acquisition and validation, and a content library featuring evidence-based clinical and compliance training modules.