Short Interest in CareTrust REIT, Inc. (NYSE:CTRE) Rises By 187.0%

CareTrust REIT, Inc. (NYSE:CTRE) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in May. As of May 29th, there was short interest totaling 20,517,458 shares, a growth of 187.0% from the May 14th total of 7,148,122 shares. Approximately 8.7% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 2,863,125 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 7.2 days.

Institutional Trading of CareTrust REIT

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CTRE. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of CareTrust REIT by 14.1% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 32,973,216 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,143,511,000 after purchasing an additional 4,067,975 shares in the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. raised its position in CareTrust REIT by 108.5% during the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,493,898 shares of the company’s stock valued at $234,820,000 after acquiring an additional 3,379,732 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in CareTrust REIT during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $114,810,000. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP grew its stake in shares of CareTrust REIT by 713.4% in the third quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP now owns 1,710,528 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,321,000 after acquiring an additional 1,989,394 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of CareTrust REIT by 18.1% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 12,355,966 shares of the company’s stock worth $446,792,000 after acquiring an additional 1,893,143 shares during the last quarter. 87.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CareTrust REIT Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of CTRE traded up $0.01 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $36.76. The stock had a trading volume of 4,050,456 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,658,839. CareTrust REIT has a fifty-two week low of $27.81 and a fifty-two week high of $43.08. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $39.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $38.48. The firm has a market cap of $8.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a current ratio of 2.38, a quick ratio of 2.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on CTRE. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on shares of CareTrust REIT from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price target on CareTrust REIT from $37.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating and set a $46.00 price objective on shares of CareTrust REIT in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Mizuho set a $45.00 price objective on CareTrust REIT in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Citigroup restated a “market outperform” rating on shares of CareTrust REIT in a research note on Wednesday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, CareTrust REIT currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $44.09.

About CareTrust REIT

CareTrust REIT, Inc is a real estate investment trust based in Deerfield Beach, Florida, specializing in the ownership, acquisition and management of net-leased healthcare properties. The company primarily focuses on seniors housing and post-acute care facilities, entering into long-term, triple-net lease agreements with leading operators in the skilled nursing, assisted living, memory care, inpatient rehabilitation and specialty hospital sectors. Through its portfolio, CareTrust REIT aims to provide investors with stable and predictable rental income while supporting the ongoing demand for quality healthcare real estate across the United States.

Since its initial public offering in September 2013, CareTrust REIT has pursued a disciplined acquisition strategy, targeting properties in primary and select secondary markets.