Embecta (NASDAQ:EMBC) Stock Price Down 4% – Time to Sell?

Embecta Corp. (NASDAQ:EMBC)’s stock price dropped 4% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $19.30 and last traded at $19.30. Approximately 211,599 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 50% from the average daily volume of 420,100 shares. The stock had previously closed at $20.10.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. BTIG Research raised shares of Embecta from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $26.00 price target on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Embecta from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $13.00 to $20.00 in a research note on Monday, December 2nd.

Embecta Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $1.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.84, a PEG ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.23. The business’s 50 day moving average is $18.80 and its 200 day moving average is $15.90.

Embecta (NASDAQ:EMBC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 26th. The company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $286.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $276.97 million. Embecta had a net margin of 6.97% and a negative return on equity of 18.54%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.59 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Embecta Corp. will post 2.84 EPS for the current year.

Embecta Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th were issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.21%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 6th. Embecta’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.44%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Embecta

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Embecta in the second quarter worth $300,000. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV purchased a new stake in Embecta in the second quarter valued at $1,663,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its position in Embecta by 16.1% during the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 21,056 shares of the company’s stock worth $262,000 after purchasing an additional 2,919 shares during the period. XTX Topco Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Embecta by 148.2% in the 2nd quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 41,584 shares of the company’s stock valued at $520,000 after buying an additional 24,827 shares during the period. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new position in shares of Embecta in the 2nd quarter valued at about $140,000. 93.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Embecta Company Profile

Embecta Corp., a medical device company, focuses on the provision of various solutions to enhance the health and wellbeing of people living with diabetes. Its products include pen needles, syringes, and safety injection devices, as well as digital applications to assist people with managing patient's diabetes.