Short Interest in Roche Holding AG (OTCMKTS:RHHBY) Increases By 22.8%

Roche Holding AG (OTCMKTS:RHHBY) saw a large increase in short interest during the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,890,400 shares, an increase of 22.8% from the December 31st total of 2,353,100 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,412,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.2 days.

Institutional Trading of Roche

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RHHBY. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS lifted its position in shares of Roche by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS now owns 136,923 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,490,000 after buying an additional 1,798 shares during the last quarter. Bard Financial Services Inc. lifted its holdings in Roche by 37.7% in the fourth quarter. Bard Financial Services Inc. now owns 110,850 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,866,000 after acquiring an additional 30,350 shares during the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co boosted its stake in Roche by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 60,453 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,130,000 after acquiring an additional 711 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Roche by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 33,708 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,176,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Confluence Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Roche by 26.3% during the 4th quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC now owns 13,981 shares of the company’s stock worth $488,000 after purchasing an additional 2,910 shares during the period.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Roche to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Roche Price Performance

OTCMKTS RHHBY traded down $0.59 on Friday, hitting $39.25. 1,178,171 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,791,798. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $36.22 and a 200 day moving average of $38.28. Roche has a twelve month low of $29.20 and a twelve month high of $42.43.

Roche Company Profile

Roche Holding AG engages in the pharmaceuticals and diagnostics businesses in Europe, North America, Latin America, Asia, Africa, Australia, and Oceania. The company offers pharmaceutical products in the therapeutic areas of anemia, blood and solid tumors, dermatology, hemophilia, inflammatory and autoimmune, neurological disorders, ophthalmology, respiratory disorders, and transplantation.