HealthStream (NASDAQ:HSTM) Sets New 12-Month Low After Insider Selling

HealthStream, Inc. (NASDAQ:HSTM) reached a new 52-week low during trading on Thursday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $23.77 and last traded at $24.22, with a volume of 218549 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $23.93.

Specifically, CTO Jeff Cunningham sold 2,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.09, for a total value of $50,589.00. Following the sale, the chief technology officer owned 31,489 shares in the company, valued at approximately $758,570.01. This trade represents a 6.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kevin P. O’hara sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.26, for a total transaction of $48,520.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 16,373 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $397,208.98. This represents a 10.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on HSTM shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of HealthStream in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of HealthStream from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, November 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $28.00.

HealthStream Stock Performance

The company’s 50-day moving average price is $25.41 and its 200 day moving average price is $26.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $722.17 million, a P/E ratio of 35.79, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.45.

HealthStream (NASDAQ:HSTM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 3rd. The technology company reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.17 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $76.47 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $75.52 million. HealthStream had a return on equity of 5.82% and a net margin of 6.93%. Analysts predict that HealthStream, Inc. will post 0.63 earnings per share for the current year.

HealthStream Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 28th. Investors of record on Monday, November 17th were paid a dividend of $0.031 per share. This represents a $0.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 17th. HealthStream’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 17.65%.

HealthStream declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, November 11th that allows the company to repurchase $10.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the technology company to repurchase up to 1.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On HealthStream

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HSTM. Aquatic Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of HealthStream in the third quarter worth $40,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its stake in HealthStream by 241.4% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,407 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 1,702 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of HealthStream by 62.5% during the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,625 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $84,000 after purchasing an additional 1,010 shares during the last quarter. State of Wyoming purchased a new position in shares of HealthStream during the second quarter valued at about $106,000. Finally, Virtus Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of HealthStream during the first quarter valued at about $161,000. 69.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

HealthStream Company Profile

HealthStream, Inc provides Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) based applications for healthcare organizations in the United States. The company’s solutions help healthcare organizations in meeting their ongoing clinical development, talent management, training, education, assessment, competency management, safety and compliance, and scheduling, as well as provider credentialing, privileging, and enrollment needs.