Short Interest in Catalent, Inc. (NYSE:CTLT) Increases By 6.9%

Catalent, Inc. (NYSE:CTLT) saw a large growth in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 9,120,000 shares, a growth of 6.9% from the August 15th total of 8,530,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,790,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 5.1 days.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Scott Gunther sold 666 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.55, for a total value of $39,660.30. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 39,635 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,360,264.25. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Catalent news, insider Ricky Hopson sold 662 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.56, for a total transaction of $39,428.72. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 29,974 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,785,251.44. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Scott Gunther sold 666 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.55, for a total value of $39,660.30. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 39,635 shares in the company, valued at $2,360,264.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 13,409 shares of company stock worth $782,923 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Catalent

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Catalent during the fourth quarter valued at about $56,000. Jump Financial LLC purchased a new position in Catalent in the fourth quarter worth about $348,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Catalent by 29.9% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,639,197 shares of the company’s stock worth $73,655,000 after acquiring an additional 376,931 shares in the last quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Catalent by 78.9% in the fourth quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 21,766 shares of the company’s stock worth $978,000 after acquiring an additional 9,600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in Catalent in the fourth quarter worth about $116,021,000.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on CTLT. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $63.50 price target on shares of Catalent in a report on Thursday, July 11th. William Blair reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Catalent in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Barclays increased their price target on Catalent from $47.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, June 28th. Finally, StockNews.com began coverage on Catalent in a report on Wednesday. They set a “sell” rating on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $58.08.

Catalent Price Performance

NYSE:CTLT traded down $0.05 on Wednesday, reaching $60.30. 2,431,479 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,105,335. The company has a quick ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 2.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $59.33 and a 200-day simple moving average of $57.15. The firm has a market cap of $10.91 billion, a PE ratio of -9.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.15. Catalent has a 12 month low of $31.80 and a 12 month high of $61.20.

About Catalent

Catalent, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, develops and manufactures solutions for drugs, protein-based biologics, cell and gene therapies, and consumer health products worldwide. It operates in two segments, Biologics, and Pharma and Consumer Health. The Biologics segment provides formulation, development, and manufacturing for biologic proteins, cell gene, and other nucleic acid therapies; pDNA, iPSCs, oncolytic viruses, and vaccines; formulation, development, and manufacturing for parenteral dose forms, including vials, prefilled syringes, and cartridges; and analytical development and testing services for large molecules.