Sector Gamma AS Lowers Position in Edwards Lifesciences Co. (NYSE:EW)

Sector Gamma AS lessened its stake in Edwards Lifesciences Co. (NYSE:EW) by 6.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 99,000 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 7,153 shares during the period. Edwards Lifesciences comprises approximately 2.5% of Sector Gamma AS’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Sector Gamma AS’s holdings in Edwards Lifesciences were worth $7,329,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Edwards Lifesciences during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. acquired a new position in Edwards Lifesciences in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Edwards Lifesciences in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Avior Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Edwards Lifesciences by 138.7% in the 3rd quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 530 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 308 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Roble Belko & Company Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Edwards Lifesciences in the 4th quarter worth $46,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.46% of the company’s stock.

Edwards Lifesciences Stock Performance

Shares of Edwards Lifesciences stock opened at $70.91 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $71.48 and a 200 day moving average of $70.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 3.46 and a quick ratio of 2.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.82 and a beta of 1.12. Edwards Lifesciences Co. has a 12 month low of $58.93 and a 12 month high of $96.12.

Edwards Lifesciences (NYSE:EW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The medical research company reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.04. Edwards Lifesciences had a return on equity of 19.40% and a net margin of 72.93%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Edwards Lifesciences Co. will post 2.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Bernard J. Zovighian sold 6,164 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.51, for a total transaction of $428,459.64. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 59,083 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,106,859.33. This trade represents a 9.45 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Daniel J. Lippis sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.76, for a total value of $34,380.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 23,189 shares in the company, valued at $1,594,475.64. This trade represents a 2.11 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 51,303 shares of company stock worth $3,715,776. 1.29% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on EW shares. Bank of America raised Edwards Lifesciences from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $82.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Stifel Nicolaus raised Edwards Lifesciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $75.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Edwards Lifesciences from $75.00 to $73.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their target price on Edwards Lifesciences from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $85.00 price target on shares of Edwards Lifesciences in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Edwards Lifesciences currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $79.95.

Edwards Lifesciences Company Profile

Edwards Lifesciences Corporation provides products and technologies for structural heart disease and critical care monitoring in the United States, Europe, Japan, and internationally. It offers transcatheter heart valve replacement products for the minimally invasive replacement of aortic heart valves under the Edwards SAPIEN family of valves system; and transcatheter heart valve repair and replacement products to treat mitral and tricuspid valve diseases under the PASCAL PRECISION and Cardioband names.