Fortrea (NASDAQ:FTRE) Shares Gap Down Following Weak Earnings

Fortrea Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:FTRE)’s share price gapped down before the market opened on Monday following a dissappointing earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $13.85, but opened at $9.61. Fortrea shares last traded at $11.49, with a volume of 1,761,855 shares.

The company reported $0.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by ($0.18). Fortrea had a negative net margin of 10.99% and a positive return on equity of 2.00%. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.19 earnings per share.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FTRE has been the subject of a number of research reports. Citigroup downgraded shares of Fortrea from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $30.00 to $23.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Fortrea from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. William Blair restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Fortrea in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Robert W. Baird downgraded Fortrea from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $28.00 to $25.00 in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on Fortrea from $20.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have issued a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $23.30.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Thomas Pike sold 11,268 shares of Fortrea stock in a transaction on Monday, January 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.04, for a total transaction of $203,274.72. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 159,868 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,884,018.72. This trade represents a 6.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 12,386 shares of company stock valued at $219,751 in the last 90 days. 0.12% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fortrea

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. acquired a new position in shares of Fortrea in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. PharVision Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Fortrea in the 4th quarter worth $345,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in Fortrea by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 255,034 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,756,000 after purchasing an additional 5,691 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP acquired a new stake in shares of Fortrea in the 4th quarter valued at about $388,000. Finally, Tang Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Fortrea in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,865,000.

Fortrea Stock Down 15.3 %

The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $16.98 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $19.17. The company has a market capitalization of $1.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.43, a PEG ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 1.18.

About Fortrea

Fortrea Holdings Inc, a contract research organization, primarily engages in the provision of biopharmaceutical product and medical device development services worldwide. The company operates through two segments: Clinical Services and Enabling Services. The Clinical Services segment provides across the clinical pharmacology and clinical development spectrum.