Short Interest in Vodafone Group Public Limited (NASDAQ:VOD) Rises By 25.0%

Vodafone Group Public Limited (NASDAQ:VOD) saw a significant growth in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,450,000 shares, a growth of 25.0% from the November 30th total of 5,160,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 5,650,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.1 days. Approximately 0.3% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Vodafone Group Public Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of Vodafone Group Public stock opened at $8.44 on Monday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $8.94 and its two-hundred day moving average is $9.29. Vodafone Group Public has a 1 year low of $8.02 and a 1 year high of $10.39. The stock has a market cap of $21.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.04, a PEG ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 1.34.

Vodafone Group Public Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.2423 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 22nd. This represents a yield of 8%. Vodafone Group Public’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.86%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Vodafone Group Public from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vodafone Group Public has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Asset Dedication LLC raised its holdings in Vodafone Group Public by 630.9% in the second quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 4,634 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 4,000 shares in the last quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont raised its position in Vodafone Group Public by 1,493.2% during the third quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 4,700 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 4,405 shares in the last quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co grew its position in shares of Vodafone Group Public by 37.8% in the third quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 5,516 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 1,513 shares during the period. Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vodafone Group Public during the second quarter worth about $49,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vodafone Group Public by 79.9% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,023 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 3,120 shares during the last quarter. 7.84% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Vodafone Group Public

Vodafone Group Public Limited Company provides telecommunication services in Europe and internationally. It offers mobile connectivity services comprising end-to-end services for mobile voice and data, messaging, device management, BYOx, and telecoms management, as well as professional and consulting services; and fixed line connectivity, such as fixed voice and data, broadband, software-defined networks, managed WAN, LAN, ethernet, and satellite; and financial services, as well as business and merchant services.