Align Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALGN) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Align Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALGN) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the ten ratings firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have issued a hold recommendation and six have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $322.78.

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of Align Technology from $370.00 to $325.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on shares of Align Technology from $400.00 to $350.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Piper Sandler cut their target price on shares of Align Technology from $330.00 to $315.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Evercore ISI cut their target price on shares of Align Technology from $370.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 10th. Finally, OTR Global reaffirmed a “mixed” rating on shares of Align Technology in a research note on Tuesday, June 4th.

Align Technology Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ALGN opened at $230.93 on Thursday. Align Technology has a 12 month low of $176.34 and a 12 month high of $375.68. The stock has a market cap of $17.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.04, a PEG ratio of 5.18 and a beta of 1.66. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $235.14 and its 200 day moving average price is $273.26.

Align Technology (NASDAQ:ALGN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.32 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $1.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.04 billion. Align Technology had a net margin of 11.34% and a return on equity of 14.07%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.73 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Align Technology will post 7.64 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Align Technology news, Director C Raymond Larkin, Jr. acquired 6,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $235.33 per share, for a total transaction of $1,529,645.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 28,247 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,647,366.51. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.62% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Align Technology

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Align Technology by 0.3% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,375,147 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,746,378,000 after acquiring an additional 25,362 shares during the period. Brown Advisory Inc. boosted its holdings in Align Technology by 41.4% during the fourth quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 1,509,080 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $413,488,000 after acquiring an additional 441,754 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in Align Technology by 1.4% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,148,282 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $277,230,000 after acquiring an additional 15,540 shares during the period. Ninety One UK Ltd boosted its holdings in Align Technology by 1.0% during the second quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 1,147,124 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $276,950,000 after acquiring an additional 10,919 shares during the period. Finally, Bares Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Align Technology by 44.4% during the first quarter. Bares Capital Management Inc. now owns 819,930 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $268,871,000 after buying an additional 252,220 shares during the last quarter. 88.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.