Artivion (NYSE:AORT) Shares Gap Down on Disappointing Earnings

Shares of Artivion, Inc. (NYSE:AORT) gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $27.85, but opened at $25.80. Artivion shares last traded at $26.11, with a volume of 87,865 shares.

The company reported ($0.39) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.12 by ($0.51). The firm had revenue of $97.31 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $100.82 million. Artivion had a positive return on equity of 5.15% and a negative net margin of 0.22%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on AORT. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $33.00 price target on shares of Artivion in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Artivion from $33.00 to $30.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Needham & Company LLC dropped their target price on Artivion from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their price target on Artivion from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $31.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Amy Horton sold 4,329 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.66, for a total transaction of $128,398.14. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 135,660 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,023,675.60. The trade was a 3.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Andrew M. Green sold 7,618 shares of Artivion stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.00, for a total transaction of $228,540.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 33,503 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,005,090. This trade represents a 18.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 20,017 shares of company stock worth $600,007 in the last ninety days. 8.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Artivion by 21.8% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,772 shares of the company’s stock valued at $79,000 after acquiring an additional 497 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in Artivion by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 21,707 shares of the company’s stock worth $621,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC increased 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 valued at $280,000 after buying an additional 653 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in Artivion by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 22,559 shares of the company’s stock worth $645,000 after acquiring an additional 727 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Artivion by 236.7% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,118 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 786 shares in the last quarter. 86.37% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Artivion Price Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of $29.75 and a 200 day moving average of $27.83. The company has a quick ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 1.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.06 billion, a PE ratio of -1,266.25 and a beta of 1.75.

About Artivion

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.