Palo Alto Investors LP Purchases Shares of 31,389 Align Technology, Inc. $ALGN

Palo Alto Investors LP purchased a new stake in Align Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALGN) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 31,389 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $5,294,069,000. Align Technology accounts for approximately 0.7% of Palo Alto Investors LP’s holdings, making the stock its 28th biggest holding.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Align Technology in the second quarter valued at about $745,370,000. Capital International Investors grew its holdings in shares of Align Technology by 52.2% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,643,221 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $725,039,000 after buying an additional 1,592,848 shares in the last quarter. Ruane Cunniff & Goldfarb L.P. acquired a new stake in Align Technology in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $190,899,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Align Technology in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $155,556,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in Align Technology by 413.0% in the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 989,388 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $169,611,000 after acquiring an additional 796,529 shares in the last quarter. 88.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on ALGN shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded Align Technology from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 1st. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Align Technology from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Evercore increased their target price on shares of Align Technology from $200.00 to $220.00 in a report on Thursday, April 30th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of Align Technology in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $209.00 target price for the company. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Align Technology from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $206.36.

Align Technology Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of NASDAQ ALGN opened at $158.84 on Friday. Align Technology, Inc. has a 12 month low of $122.00 and a 12 month high of $200.43. The company has a market capitalization of $11.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.62, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.65. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $173.50 and a 200-day moving average of $175.27.

Align Technology (NASDAQ:ALGN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.62 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.05 billion. Align Technology had a net margin of 9.99% and a return on equity of 15.86%. The company’s revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.49 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Align Technology, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Align Technology Profile

Align Technology, Inc (NASDAQ: ALGN) pioneered the use of digital technology in orthodontics through the development of the Invisalign system, a series of clear, removable aligners that provide an alternative to traditional metal braces. Since its founding in 1997 by Zia Chishti and Kelsey Wirth, the Tempe, Arizona–based company has expanded its focus to include intraoral scanners, CAD/CAM software for dental laboratories and comprehensive digital dentistry solutions.

The company’s signature Invisalign system leverages 3D imaging and computer-aided design (CAD) to create customized aligners that gradually reposition teeth, improving patient comfort and treatment predictability.