Exact Sciences Co. (NASDAQ:EXAS) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Exact Sciences Co. (NASDAQ:EXAS) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the nineteen brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $72.76.

Several analysts have commented on EXAS shares. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of Exact Sciences from $82.00 to $67.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Exact Sciences in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $70.00 price target on the stock. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Exact Sciences from $70.00 to $67.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Exact Sciences from $82.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, BTIG Research raised their target price on Exact Sciences from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th.

Exact Sciences Stock Performance

Shares of EXAS opened at $54.28 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 1.93 and a current ratio of 2.12. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $57.48 and a two-hundred day moving average of $59.93. The stock has a market cap of $10.05 billion, a P/E ratio of -46.39 and a beta of 1.24. Exact Sciences has a one year low of $40.62 and a one year high of $79.62.

Exact Sciences (NASDAQ:EXAS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The medical research company reported ($0.21) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.20) by ($0.01). Exact Sciences had a negative return on equity of 6.17% and a negative net margin of 7.95%. The firm had revenue of $708.66 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $716.80 million. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Exact Sciences will post -1.1 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Exact Sciences

In other news, CEO Kevin T. Conroy purchased 19,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $51.35 per share, for a total transaction of $1,001,325.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,074,191 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $55,159,707.85. This trade represents a 1.85 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.36% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Exact Sciences

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. WCM Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Exact Sciences by 1,153.2% in the third quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 187,807 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $12,388,000 after buying an additional 172,821 shares during the last quarter. Simplify Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Exact Sciences by 67.5% in the 3rd quarter. Simplify Asset Management Inc. now owns 29,277 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,994,000 after acquiring an additional 11,800 shares during the last quarter. Zacks Investment Management purchased a new position in Exact Sciences in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,083,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. lifted its stake in Exact Sciences by 59.5% in the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 335,705 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $22,868,000 after purchasing an additional 125,192 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Exact Sciences by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,292,090 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $88,017,000 after purchasing an additional 45,015 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.82% of the company’s stock.

Exact Sciences Company Profile

Exact Sciences Corporation provides cancer screening and diagnostic test products in the United States and internationally. The company offers Cologuard, a non-invasive stool-based DNA screening test to detect DNA and hemoglobin biomarkers associated with colorectal cancer and pre-cancer. It also provides Oncotype DX Breast Recurrence Score Test; Oncotype DX Breast DCIS Score Test; Oncotype DX Colon Recurrence Score Test; OncoExTra Test for tumor profiling for patients with advanced, metastatic, refractory, relapsed, or recurrent cancer; and Covid-19 testing services.