First Light Asset Management LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in AxoGen, Inc. $AXGN

First Light Asset Management LLC lessened its position in shares of AxoGen, Inc. (NASDAQ:AXGN) by 31.3% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,748,361 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after selling 1,254,407 shares during the period. AxoGen comprises 7.7% of First Light Asset Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd largest position. First Light Asset Management LLC owned approximately 5.11% of AxoGen worth $126,947,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of AxoGen during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $204,123,000. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its holdings in AxoGen by 4,400.3% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 2,661,006 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $122,912,000 after purchasing an additional 2,601,877 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its position in AxoGen by 183.9% in the second quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,931,158 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $20,953,000 after purchasing an additional 1,250,968 shares in the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP increased its stake in AxoGen by 101.1% in the 1st quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 1,857,350 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $61,534,000 after buying an additional 933,778 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in AxoGen by 2,255.8% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 971,358 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $31,793,000 after buying an additional 930,126 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.29% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Zacks Research raised AxoGen from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of AxoGen in a research note on Wednesday, August 26th. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price target on AxoGen from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Citigroup reiterated a “market outperform” rating on shares of AxoGen in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Citizens Jmp upped their price objective on AxoGen from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, AxoGen currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $51.56.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Joseph Tyndall sold 3,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.70, for a total transaction of $173,950.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 10,650 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $529,305. The trade was a 24.73% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Kathy Weiler sold 14,150 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.30, for a total value of $640,995.00. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 98,503 shares of company stock valued at $4,656,947 over the last 90 days. 2.44% of the stock is owned by insiders.

AxoGen Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:AXGN opened at $47.27 on Thursday. AxoGen, Inc. has a 52-week low of $15.27 and a 52-week high of $52.91. The company has a market capitalization of $2.54 billion, a P/E ratio of -69.51 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $45.36 and a 200 day simple moving average of $40.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 5.04 and a current ratio of 6.60.

AxoGen (NASDAQ:AXGN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The medical equipment provider reported $0.12 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.12. The firm had revenue of $69.73 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $67.10 million. AxoGen had a negative return on equity of 8.90% and a negative net margin of 13.36%. Sell-side analysts forecast that AxoGen, Inc. will post -0.45 earnings per share for the current year.

AxoGen Profile

AxoGen, Inc is a Florida-based medical technology company that develops and commercializes surgical solutions for peripheral nerve damage. Founded in 2002 and headquartered in Alachua, Florida, the company focuses on restoring nerve function and improving patient outcomes through innovative biologic and engineered products. AxoGen’s offerings address a range of traumatic and iatrogenic injuries, offering alternatives to traditional nerve autografts.

The company’s core product portfolio includes the Avance® Nerve Graft, a decellularized human nerve allograft designed to bridge nerve gaps without the need for a secondary harvest site, and the Axoguard® Nerve Connector and Protector devices, which facilitate nerve coaptation and protect repaired sites from surrounding scar tissue.