Why this matters — Three distinct ORTEX data streams have aligned on VLTO (Veralto Corporation) within days of each other. Short interest, cost to borrow, and options sentiment are all shifting in the same direction simultaneously.
Short interest collapses. SI % FF fell 11.3% in a single day on April 24, dropping to 1.54% of float. That is the sharpest one-day decline in recent weeks. The one-week drop is 12.4% and the one-month decline is 13.5%. Short sellers have been unwinding steadily and then accelerated sharply.
Cost to borrow eases. The cost to borrow stands at 0.40% APR as of April 24. That is down 26.3% over the past week — from a recent peak of 0.66% on April 22. A falling CTB alongside falling short interest confirms lenders are releasing shares, not hoarding them.
Options market tilts bullish. The put/call ratio hit 0.078 on April 24 — well below its 20-day average of 0.111. An earlier pulse flagged this PCR drop at a Z-score of -2.2, signalling unusually heavy call activity relative to recent norms. The 52-week low PCR is 0.065, so the current reading is approaching extreme bullish positioning in the options market.
Analyst sentiment is mixed but leans constructive. Jefferies upgraded VLTO to Buy on March 31, raising its target to $110. Stifel maintained its Buy rating on April 14 but trimmed its target to $110 from $118. The consensus mean price target stands at $108.94 — implying roughly 23% upside to the current $88.62 close. Factor scores add a notable data point: VLTO ranks at the 93rd percentile for analyst recommendation divergence, suggesting the street remains more bullish than current pricing reflects. Insider activity over the past 90 days has been net selling, with ~$3.0M in net sales — a mild counter-signal worth noting. Institutionally, T. Rowe Price added 1.07 million shares in the most recent reporting period, and First Trust Advisors added 1.19 million shares — both meaningful accumulations.
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