Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Reduces Stock Holdings in Hologic, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOLX)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. cut its position in shares of Hologic, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOLX) by 79.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 80,448 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after selling 303,437 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Hologic were worth $5,799,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Prentiss Smith & Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in Hologic by 0.3% during the third quarter. Prentiss Smith & Co. Inc. now owns 48,696 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $3,967,000 after buying an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in Hologic by 23.8% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 692 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its position in Hologic by 38.3% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 484 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC raised its position in Hologic by 1.8% during the third quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 8,473 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $690,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares during the period. Finally, Wedmont Private Capital raised its position in Hologic by 3.7% during the third quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 4,519 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $361,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares during the period. 94.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hologic Price Performance

Hologic stock opened at $69.73 on Tuesday. Hologic, Inc. has a 12-month low of $68.61 and a 12-month high of $84.67. The stock has a market cap of $15.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.94, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $74.65 and a 200 day moving average price of $78.38. The company has a current ratio of 3.69, a quick ratio of 3.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49.

Hologic (NASDAQ:HOLX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The medical equipment provider reported $1.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.01. Hologic had a net margin of 19.59% and a return on equity of 19.79%. The firm had revenue of $987.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $978.25 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.89 earnings per share. Hologic’s revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Hologic, Inc. will post 4.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on HOLX shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Hologic from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Mizuho reduced their price objective on shares of Hologic from $90.00 to $87.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Hologic in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. Citigroup cut shares of Hologic from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $95.00 to $85.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Hologic from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $88.92.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hologic news, COO Essex D. Mitchell sold 24,856 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.34, for a total transaction of $1,897,507.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 27,957 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,134,237.38. This trade represents a 47.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 1.75% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Hologic

Hologic, Inc develops, manufactures, and supplies diagnostics products, medical imaging systems, and surgical products for women's health through early detection and treatment. The company operates through four segments: Diagnostics, Breast Health, GYN Surgical, and Skeletal Health. It provides Aptima molecular diagnostic assays to detect the infectious microorganisms; Aptima viral load assays for Hepatitis B virus, Hepatitis C virus, human immunodeficiency virus, and human cytomegalo virus; Aptima bacterial vaginosis and candida vaginitis assays for the diagnosis of vaginitis; Aptima SARS-CoV-2 and Panther Fusion SARS-CoV-2 assays to detect SARS-CoV-2; ThinPrep System for cytology applications; and Rapid Fetal Fibronectin Test that assists physicians in assessing the risk of pre-term birth.