Novanta (NASDAQ:NOVT) Releases Q2 2026 Earnings Guidance

Novanta (NASDAQ:NOVT) updated its second quarter 2026 earnings guidance on Monday. The company provided earnings per share (EPS) guidance of 0.810-0.860 for the period, compared to the consensus estimate of 0.860. The company issued revenue guidance of $259.0 million-$264.0 million, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $256.9 million. Novanta also updated its FY 2026 guidance to 3.500-3.650 EPS.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Novanta in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Robert W. Baird upgraded Novanta from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $150.00 to $144.00 in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Novanta from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 16th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Novanta from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, April 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $144.00.

Novanta Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of NASDAQ NOVT traded up $1.65 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $139.96. 612,672 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 420,164. The stock has a market cap of $4.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 95.86 and a beta of 1.62. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $125.83 and a 200 day simple moving average of $125.05. Novanta has a 1-year low of $98.27 and a 1-year high of $149.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 3.69 and a quick ratio of 2.80.

Novanta (NASDAQ:NOVT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 11th. The technology company reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $257.71 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $253.40 million. Novanta had a net margin of 5.49% and a return on equity of 13.12%. Novanta has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.500-3.650 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.810-0.860 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Novanta will post 3.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Novanta

In other news, CFO Robert Buckley sold 9,957 shares of Novanta stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.77, for a total transaction of $1,162,678.89. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 96,616 shares in the company, valued at $11,281,850.32. This trade represents a 9.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Matthijs Glastra sold 7,500 shares of Novanta stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.04, for a total transaction of $1,087,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 57,367 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,320,509.68. This represents a 11.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 25,380 shares of company stock valued at $3,296,276 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Danske Bank A S purchased a new position in Novanta during the third quarter worth about $40,000. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in Novanta by 17.2% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,627 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $163,000 after purchasing an additional 239 shares during the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Novanta during the fourth quarter worth about $219,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new position in Novanta during the fourth quarter worth about $261,000. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Novanta during the fourth quarter worth about $275,000. 98.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Novanta

Novanta, Inc (NASDAQ: NOVT) is a global technology company that designs and manufactures precision components, subsystems and software used in advanced photonics and motion control applications. The company serves customers in the medical device and advanced industrial markets, supplying critical technologies for diagnostics and therapeutic systems, semiconductor and electronics manufacturing, and scientific instrumentation. Novanta’s product portfolio includes laser control modules, optics, beam delivery systems, high-precision motors, actuators, stages, and fluidics solutions designed to meet stringent accuracy and reliability requirements.

Novanta’s Photonics segment delivers laser and energy delivery components that enable minimally invasive surgical procedures and diagnostic imaging.