Petco Health and Wellness Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:WOOF) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Petco Health and Wellness Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:WOOF) was the target of a large growth in short interest in the month of July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totaling 20,940,000 shares, agrowthof55,443.8% from the June 30th total of 37,700 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 4,470,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.7 days. Approximately15.6% of the shares of the company are short sold. Approximately15.6% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 4,470,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.7 days.

Petco Health and Wellness Trading Down 3.0%

Shares of WOOF opened at $2.92 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $3.08 and its 200-day moving average price is $3.09. Petco Health and Wellness has a twelve month low of $2.23 and a twelve month high of $6.29. The stock has a market cap of $920.18 million, a PE ratio of -12.17 and a beta of 1.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43.

Petco Health and Wellness (NASDAQ:WOOF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 5th. The company reported ($0.04) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.01) by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $1.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.50 billion. Petco Health and Wellness had a negative net margin of 1.10% and a negative return on equity of 4.29%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($0.04) earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Petco Health and Wellness will post -0.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on WOOF. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Petco Health and Wellness from $5.00 to $4.50 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 6th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Petco Health and Wellness from $3.00 to $3.50 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $3.75.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Petco Health and Wellness

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Petco Health and Wellness by 8.5% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,691,631 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,509,000 after acquiring an additional 682,099 shares during the last quarter. Long Focus Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Petco Health and Wellness during the first quarter worth about $12,923,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Petco Health and Wellness by 60.2% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 3,637,695 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,095,000 after purchasing an additional 1,367,299 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Petco Health and Wellness by 269.8% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,242,546 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,354,000 after purchasing an additional 2,365,654 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Solas Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Petco Health and Wellness in the 1st quarter worth approximately $9,150,000.

About Petco Health and Wellness

Petco Health and Wellness Company, Inc, operates as a health and wellness company, focuses on enhancing the lives of pets, pet parents, and its Petco partners in the United States, Mexico, and Puerto Rico. The company provides veterinary care, grooming, training, tele-health, and Vital Care and pet health insurance services, as well as veterinary services through Vetco mobile clinics.