Axon Enterprise, Inc $AXON Stake Increased by The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its holdings in Axon Enterprise, Inc (NASDAQ:AXON) by 8,432.6% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 3,537,957 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,496,493 shares during the period. Axon Enterprise accounts for approximately 1.0% of The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings in Axon Enterprise were worth $1,983,414,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of AXON. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV acquired a new position in Axon Enterprise in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Axon Enterprise during the second quarter valued at about $31,000. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Axon Enterprise during the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Axon Enterprise in the second quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Washington Trust Advisors Inc. grew its position in Axon Enterprise by 1,300.0% in the 2nd quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 70 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. 79.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Axon Enterprise Stock Down 2.3%

Shares of Axon Enterprise stock opened at $478.85 on Friday. Axon Enterprise, Inc has a 1 year low of $339.01 and a 1 year high of $792.16. The company has a market cap of $38.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 198.69, a P/E/G ratio of 9.56 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a current ratio of 2.15, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $564.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $488.42.

Axon Enterprise (NASDAQ:AXON) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The biotechnology company reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.84 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $904.39 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $876.42 million. Axon Enterprise had a return on equity of 2.84% and a net margin of 6.19%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 35.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.12 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Axon Enterprise, Inc will post 2.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Axon Enterprise

In other Axon Enterprise news, President Joshua Isner sold 16,775 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $574.43, for a total value of $9,636,063.25. Following the completion of the sale, the president owned 296,974 shares in the company, valued at $170,590,774.82. This represents a 5.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Jeffrey C. Kunins sold 9,605 shares of Axon Enterprise stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $626.70, for a total transaction of $6,019,453.50. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 97,761 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $61,266,818.70. This trade represents a 8.95% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 66,380 shares of company stock valued at $37,672,266. Corporate insiders own 4.20% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Axon Enterprise

Here are the key news stories impacting Axon Enterprise this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst remains bullish: TD Cowen reaffirmed Axon as a top pick with a Buy rating and an $825 price target, citing an expected shift by cities toward Axon’s automated license-plate-recognition contracts. TD Cowen Axon analyst rating
• Positive Sentiment: Large Baltimore contract: Baltimore Police is adding 200 Axon license-plate cameras as part of a broader $153 million deal, supporting the company’s public-safety technology backlog and recurring-revenue opportunity. Baltimore Police Axon contract
• Neutral Sentiment: Technical and market factors: Analysts attributed the weakness primarily to profit-taking and broader risk-off trading in premium-valued growth stocks, rather than a new operational setback. A technical analysis identified the roughly $505 area as an important support level. Analysis of Axon share decline
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation concerns: A research report argued that rising sales and strong net revenue retention may not be sufficient to justify Axon’s elevated share price. The stock’s high earnings multiple leaves it vulnerable to additional multiple compression if growth expectations moderate. Axon earnings and valuation report
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling adds pressure: CEO Patrick Smith sold 10,000 shares worth approximately $5.1 million under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. The planned nature of the transaction reduces its significance, but repeated insider sales and no reported insider purchases can weigh on sentiment. Axon CEO SEC filing

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on AXON. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Axon Enterprise in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Zacks Research downgraded Axon Enterprise from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Argus increased their price target on Axon Enterprise from $460.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 3rd. Citizens Jmp reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and set a $700.00 target price on shares of Axon Enterprise in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $715.00 price target on shares of Axon Enterprise in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $721.57.

Axon Enterprise Profile

Axon Enterprise, Inc develops technology and equipment for law enforcement, public safety and other government agencies. Its product portfolio includes TASER energy weapons, body-worn cameras, in-car cameras and related connected devices designed to support safer interactions, improve transparency and collect operational data.

The company also provides cloud-based software for managing digital evidence, conducting investigations, overseeing records and workflows, coordinating dispatch and supporting real-time public safety operations.