Align Technology, Inc. $ALGN Shares Acquired by Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund raised its holdings in shares of Align Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALGN) by 22.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 44,374 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,209 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Align Technology were worth $6,450,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. K.J. Harrison & Partners Inc purchased a new position in Align Technology during the 2nd quarter valued at $1,872,000. Maridea Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Align Technology in the 2nd quarter worth $1,659,000. NewEdge Wealth LLC bought a new position in Align Technology in the 2nd quarter worth $1,658,000. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Align Technology in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,128,000. Finally, Nykredit A S purchased a new stake in shares of Align Technology in the 2nd quarter worth about $74,077,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.43% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on ALGN shares. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on shares of Align Technology from $210.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 9th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $189.00 price target on shares of Align Technology in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Zacks Research lowered shares of Align Technology from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Wall Street Zen cut Align Technology from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Align Technology from $188.00 to $175.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Align Technology currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $193.08.

Align Technology Trading Down 3.0%

ALGN opened at $166.97 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $151.50 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $168.56. The company has a market cap of $11.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 1.74. Align Technology, Inc. has a 12-month low of $130.23 and a 12-month high of $200.43.

Align Technology (NASDAQ:ALGN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 28th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.77 by $0.03. Align Technology had a return on equity of 15.96% and a net margin of 11.83%. The business had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.61 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Align Technology, Inc. will post 9.21 EPS for the current year.

About Align Technology

Align Technology, Inc. develops, manufactures and markets digital orthodontic and restorative dentistry products. Its best-known offering is the Invisalign system, which uses a series of custom-made clear aligners to straighten teeth. The company also sells Vivera retainers and iTero intraoral scanners, which support digital dental imaging and treatment planning. Founded in 1997, Align helped popularize clear-aligner orthodontic treatment as an alternative to traditional braces. Its digital dentistry portfolio also includes exocad software, used by dental professionals and laboratories to design dental restorations.