Morgan Stanley Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Hologic (NASDAQ:HOLX) Stock Price

Hologic (NASDAQ:HOLX) had its target price reduced by equities researchers at Morgan Stanley from $84.00 to $82.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “equal weight” rating on the medical equipment provider’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 16.63% from the company’s current price.

HOLX has been the subject of several other research reports. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Hologic in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. They set a “hold” rating and a $85.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Hologic from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. StockNews.com raised shares of Hologic from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Hologic from $84.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Hologic from $78.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $88.92.

Hologic Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:HOLX traded down $1.39 on Monday, reaching $70.31. 1,268,644 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,871,706. The company has a fifty day moving average of $75.88 and a 200-day moving average of $78.55. Hologic has a twelve month low of $69.46 and a twelve month high of $84.67. The company has a market capitalization of $15.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.11, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a current ratio of 3.69, a quick ratio of 3.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49.

Hologic (NASDAQ:HOLX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The medical equipment provider reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.01. The business had revenue of $987.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $978.25 million. Hologic had a net margin of 19.59% and a return on equity of 19.79%. The firm’s revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.89 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Hologic will post 4.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Essex D. Mitchell sold 24,856 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.34, for a total value of $1,897,507.04. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 27,957 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,134,237.38. The trade was a 47.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 1.75% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Hologic

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Prentiss Smith & Co. Inc. grew its stake in Hologic by 0.3% during the third quarter. Prentiss Smith & Co. Inc. now owns 48,696 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,967,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its stake in Hologic by 23.8% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 692 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $56,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Hologic by 38.3% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 484 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Finance LLC grew its stake in Hologic by 1.8% during the third quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 8,473 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $690,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wedmont Private Capital grew its stake in Hologic by 3.7% during the third quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 4,519 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $361,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.73% of the company’s stock.

About Hologic

Hologic, Inc develops, manufactures, and supplies diagnostics products, medical imaging systems, and surgical products for women's health through early detection and treatment. The company operates through four segments: Diagnostics, Breast Health, GYN Surgical, and Skeletal Health. It provides Aptima molecular diagnostic assays to detect the infectious microorganisms; Aptima viral load assays for Hepatitis B virus, Hepatitis C virus, human immunodeficiency virus, and human cytomegalo virus; Aptima bacterial vaginosis and candida vaginitis assays for the diagnosis of vaginitis; Aptima SARS-CoV-2 and Panther Fusion SARS-CoV-2 assays to detect SARS-CoV-2; ThinPrep System for cytology applications; and Rapid Fetal Fibronectin Test that assists physicians in assessing the risk of pre-term birth.