Hologic (NASDAQ:HOLX) Hits New 1-Year Low – What’s Next?

Shares of Hologic, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOLX) hit a new 52-week low on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $63.57 and last traded at $63.87, with a volume of 140290 shares. The stock had previously closed at $64.47.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on HOLX. StockNews.com upgraded Hologic from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on Hologic from $76.00 to $73.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Hologic in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $85.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group raised their price objective on Hologic from $84.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Hologic from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $85.77.

Hologic Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $14.36 billion, a PE ratio of 20.07, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a quick ratio of 3.03, a current ratio of 3.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The company has a 50-day moving average of $71.28 and a 200-day moving average of $77.37.

Hologic (NASDAQ:HOLX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical equipment provider reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.02 by $0.01. Hologic had a return on equity of 19.72% and a net margin of 18.42%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Hologic, Inc. will post 4.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hologic news, COO Essex D. Mitchell sold 24,856 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.34, for a total value of $1,897,507.04. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 27,957 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,134,237.38. The trade was a 47.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 1.88% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Hologic by 64.0% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,572,545 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $453,940,000 after buying an additional 2,174,093 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Hologic in the fourth quarter valued at $133,414,000. Boston Partners raised its stake in shares of Hologic by 81.0% in the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,580,519 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $257,959,000 after buying an additional 1,602,463 shares during the period. Champlain Investment Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hologic in the fourth quarter valued at $79,291,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Hologic by 16.4% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,070,384 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $293,434,000 after buying an additional 572,187 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.73% of the company’s stock.

About Hologic

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.