Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec Makes New Investment in Align Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALGN)

Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec bought a new stake in Align Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALGN) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 6,141 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,562,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in ALGN. Braidwell LP boosted its stake in shares of Align Technology by 13.3% in the 3rd quarter. Braidwell LP now owns 311,679 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $79,266,000 after purchasing an additional 36,472 shares in the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC lifted its stake in Align Technology by 462.1% in the 3rd quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 13,450 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,421,000 after purchasing an additional 11,057 shares during the last quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. acquired a new stake in Align Technology in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,043,000. Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its stake in shares of Align Technology by 11.8% during the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 2,839 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $722,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FORA Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Align Technology during the third quarter worth $590,000. 88.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com raised Align Technology from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Align Technology from $325.00 to $276.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on Align Technology from $270.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Align Technology from $310.00 to $280.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Align Technology in a research report on Monday, November 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $276.38.

Align Technology Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ALGN opened at $234.01 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $225.75 and its 200-day moving average price is $235.46. Align Technology, Inc. has a 52-week low of $196.09 and a 52-week high of $335.40. The company has a market capitalization of $17.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.07 and a beta of 1.66.

Align Technology (NASDAQ:ALGN) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The medical equipment provider reported $2.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $977.87 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $990.05 million. Align Technology had a net margin of 11.15% and a return on equity of 13.99%. Align Technology’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.62 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Align Technology, Inc. will post 7.45 earnings per share for the current year.

About Align Technology

Align Technology, Inc designs, manufactures, and markets Invisalign clear aligners, and iTero intraoral scanners and services for orthodontists and general practitioner dentists in the United States, Switzerland, and internationally. The company's Clear Aligner segment offers comprehensive products, including Invisalign comprehensive package that addresses the orthodontic needs of younger patients, such as mandibular advancement, compliance indicators, and compensation for tooth eruption; and Invisalign First Phase I and Invisalign First Comprehensive Phase 2 package for younger patients generally between the ages of six and ten years, which is a mixture of primary/baby and permanent teeth.