Hologic’s (HOLX) Buy Rating Reaffirmed at Needham & Company LLC

Hologic (NASDAQ:HOLX)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reiterated by equities research analysts at Needham & Company LLC in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $90.00 target price on the medical equipment provider’s stock. Needham & Company LLC’s price objective points to a potential upside of 25.61% from the stock’s current price.

Several other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the company. Leerink Partners reduced their price target on Hologic from $95.00 to $90.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Raymond James lifted their target price on shares of Hologic from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Hologic from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Hologic from $78.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Hologic from $86.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Hologic presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $89.50.

Hologic Stock Performance

Shares of HOLX opened at $71.65 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $16.26 billion, a PE ratio of 21.52, a PEG ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 3.03 and a current ratio of 3.69. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $78.65 and its 200 day moving average price is $78.52. Hologic has a 52 week low of $70.36 and a 52 week high of $84.67.

Hologic (NASDAQ:HOLX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The medical equipment provider reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.01. Hologic had a net margin of 19.59% and a return on equity of 19.79%. The business had revenue of $987.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $978.25 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.89 EPS. Hologic’s revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Hologic will post 4.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Essex D. Mitchell sold 24,856 shares of Hologic stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.34, for a total transaction of $1,897,507.04. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 27,957 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,134,237.38. This trade represents a 47.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.75% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Hologic

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hologic in the third quarter valued at $25,000. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in Hologic in the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Hologic by 38.3% in the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 484 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Hologic during the 2nd quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Cromwell Holdings LLC increased its stake in Hologic by 330.2% in the third quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 542 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 416 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.73% of the company’s stock.

Hologic Company Profile

Hologic, Inc develops, manufactures, and supplies diagnostics products, medical imaging systems, and surgical products for women's health through early detection and treatment. The company operates through four segments: Diagnostics, Breast Health, GYN Surgical, and Skeletal Health. It provides Aptima molecular diagnostic assays to detect the infectious microorganisms; Aptima viral load assays for Hepatitis B virus, Hepatitis C virus, human immunodeficiency virus, and human cytomegalo virus; Aptima bacterial vaginosis and candida vaginitis assays for the diagnosis of vaginitis; Aptima SARS-CoV-2 and Panther Fusion SARS-CoV-2 assays to detect SARS-CoV-2; ThinPrep System for cytology applications; and Rapid Fetal Fibronectin Test that assists physicians in assessing the risk of pre-term birth.