Franklin Resources Inc. Boosts Holdings in Artivion, Inc. (NYSE:AORT)

Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Artivion, Inc. (NYSE:AORT) by 14.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 21,107 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 2,663 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 0.05% of Artivion worth $553,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in shares of Artivion by 3.2% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 15,301 shares of the company’s stock valued at $392,000 after acquiring an additional 481 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Artivion by 6.6% in the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 10,530 shares of the company’s stock worth $280,000 after purchasing an additional 653 shares during the period. Quarry LP increased its stake in shares of Artivion by 210.8% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,209 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 820 shares in the last quarter. nVerses Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Artivion during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in Artivion by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 301,992 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,746,000 after buying an additional 2,018 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.37% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on AORT shares. Oppenheimer raised their price target on Artivion from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and set a $33.00 target price on shares of Artivion in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $34.00 price target on shares of Artivion in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Artivion from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $31.80.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Jean F. Holloway sold 8,070 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.12, for a total transaction of $243,068.40. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 153,862 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,634,323.44. This represents a 4.98 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Amy Horton sold 4,329 shares of Artivion stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.66, for a total value of $128,398.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 135,660 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,023,675.60. This represents a 3.09 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 20,017 shares of company stock worth $600,007. 8.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Artivion Price Performance

Shares of Artivion stock opened at $28.59 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $1.20 billion, a PE ratio of -1,429.50 and a beta of 1.75. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $28.22 and a 200 day moving average of $26.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.88, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. Artivion, Inc. has a 12 month low of $16.48 and a 12 month high of $30.45.

Artivion Company Profile

Artivion, Inc manufactures, processes, and distributes medical devices and implantable human tissues worldwide. The company provides BioGlue, a polymer consisting of bovine blood protein and an agent for cross-linking proteins for cardiac, vascular, neurologic, and pulmonary procedures; cardiac preservation services; PhotoFix, a bovine pericardial patch; and aortic arch stent grafts including E-vita Open Plus and E-vita Open Neo.