ICU Medical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ICUI) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

ICU Medical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ICUI) saw a significant growth in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 735,400 shares, a growth of 11.8% from the November 30th total of 657,500 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 237,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.1 days. Currently, 3.3% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Insider Activity at ICU Medical

In related news, COO Christian B. Voigtlander sold 1,962 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.08, for a total transaction of $331,734.96. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Vivek Jain sold 12,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.91, for a total transaction of $1,954,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 104,593 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,039,245.63. The trade was a 10.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 28,364 shares of company stock valued at $4,728,358. 6.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of ICUI. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of ICU Medical by 11.5% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 216,509 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $25,710,000 after buying an additional 22,310 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its position in shares of ICU Medical by 16.6% during the 2nd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 5,514 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $655,000 after acquiring an additional 786 shares during the last quarter. Versor Investments LP purchased a new position in shares of ICU Medical during the second quarter worth about $273,000. Rhumbline Advisers grew its holdings in shares of ICU Medical by 23.0% during the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 66,916 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $7,946,000 after purchasing an additional 12,519 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mesirow Institutional Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of ICU Medical by 0.9% in the second quarter. Mesirow Institutional Investment Management Inc. now owns 145,028 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $17,222,000 after purchasing an additional 1,297 shares during the last quarter. 96.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

ICU Medical Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of ICU Medical stock opened at $155.17 on Wednesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $165.36 and its 200-day moving average price is $155.50. The company has a market cap of $3.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -33.95 and a beta of 0.62. ICU Medical has a 12-month low of $86.80 and a 12-month high of $196.26. The company has a current ratio of 2.29, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on ICUI. Raymond James boosted their target price on ICU Medical from $158.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. StockNews.com raised shares of ICU Medical from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of ICU Medical in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. KeyCorp boosted their price target on shares of ICU Medical from $198.00 to $209.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of ICU Medical from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $200.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $199.67.

ICU Medical Company Profile

ICU Medical, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and sells medical devices used in infusion therapy, vascular access, and vital care applications worldwide. Its infusion therapy products include needlefree products under the MicroClave, MicroClave Clear, and NanoClave brands; Neutron catheter patency devices; ChemoClave and ChemoLock closed system transfer devices, which are used to limit the escape of hazardous drugs or vapor concentrations, block the transfer of environmental contaminants into the system, and eliminates the risk of needlestick injury; Tego needle free connectors; Deltec GRIPPER non-coring needles for portal access; and ClearGuard, SwabCap, and SwabTip disinfection caps.