Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. Raises Holdings in Align Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALGN)

Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. raised its position in shares of Align Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALGN) by 10.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 40,100 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,900 shares during the period. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc.’s holdings in Align Technology were worth $8,361,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Align Technology by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,790,014 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $372,299,000 after buying an additional 39,209 shares during the period. Ninety One UK Ltd boosted its position in shares of Align Technology by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 1,220,601 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $254,508,000 after buying an additional 43,524 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Align Technology by 17.1% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,082,162 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $225,642,000 after buying an additional 158,312 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Align Technology during the fourth quarter worth $190,792,000. Finally, Meridiem Investment Management Ltd. boosted its holdings in Align Technology by 63.7% in the fourth quarter. Meridiem Investment Management Ltd. now owns 764,732 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $159,470,000 after purchasing an additional 297,472 shares during the period. 88.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on ALGN. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Align Technology from $255.00 to $246.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Align Technology from $280.00 to $272.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Align Technology from $165.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. HSBC cut Align Technology from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the company from $290.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on Align Technology from $240.00 to $215.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $241.25.

Align Technology Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of ALGN opened at $186.72 on Friday. Align Technology, Inc. has a twelve month low of $141.74 and a twelve month high of $283.00. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $169.37 and its two-hundred day moving average is $199.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.53 billion, a PE ratio of 33.28, a P/E/G ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.68.

Align Technology (NASDAQ:ALGN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.00 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $979.26 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $977.90 million. Align Technology had a return on equity of 13.84% and a net margin of 10.54%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.14 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Align Technology, Inc. will post 7.98 EPS for the current year.

Align Technology announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Tuesday, May 6th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the medical equipment provider to buy up to 7.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

About Align Technology

Align Technology, Inc designs, manufactures, and markets Invisalign clear aligners, and iTero intraoral scanners and services for orthodontists and general practitioner dentists in the United States, Switzerland, and internationally. The company's Clear Aligner segment offers comprehensive products, including Invisalign comprehensive package that addresses the orthodontic needs of younger patients, such as mandibular advancement, compliance indicators, and compensation for tooth eruption; and Invisalign First Phase I and Invisalign First Comprehensive Phase 2 package for younger patients generally between the ages of six and ten years, which is a mixture of primary/baby and permanent teeth.