Proficio Capital Partners LLC Acquires New Stake in QuidelOrtho Co. (NASDAQ:QDEL)

Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of QuidelOrtho Co. (NASDAQ:QDEL) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 19,557 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $871,000.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in QuidelOrtho in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in QuidelOrtho by 188.0% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,293 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 844 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management purchased a new stake in QuidelOrtho during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $74,000. KBC Group NV raised its position in QuidelOrtho by 122.9% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,437 shares of the company’s stock valued at $153,000 after purchasing an additional 1,895 shares during the period. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors purchased a new stake in shares of QuidelOrtho in the third quarter worth approximately $238,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.00% of the company’s stock.

QuidelOrtho Stock Up 2.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ QDEL opened at $40.80 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.75 billion, a PE ratio of -1.35 and a beta of 0.10. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $42.69 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $42.20. QuidelOrtho Co. has a 12-month low of $29.74 and a 12-month high of $49.45.

QuidelOrtho (NASDAQ:QDEL) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.07 by ($0.44). QuidelOrtho had a negative net margin of 72.84% and a positive return on equity of 3.78%. As a group, analysts expect that QuidelOrtho Co. will post 2.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on QuidelOrtho in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. They set a “hold” rating and a $43.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on QuidelOrtho from $64.00 to $61.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. William Blair restated a “market perform” rating on shares of QuidelOrtho in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Citigroup upgraded QuidelOrtho from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $44.00 to $50.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on QuidelOrtho from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $51.20.

Insider Transactions at QuidelOrtho

In other QuidelOrtho news, CEO Brian J. Blaser acquired 6,033 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $41.42 per share, with a total value of $249,886.86. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 6,033 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $249,886.86. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

QuidelOrtho Company Profile

QuidelOrtho Corporation provides diagnostic testing solutions. The company operates through Labs, Transfusion Medicine, Point-of-Care, and Molecular Diagnostics business units. The Labs business unit provides clinical chemistry laboratory instruments and tests that measure target chemicals in bodily fluids for the evaluation of health and the clinical management of patients; immunoassay laboratory instruments and tests, which measure proteins as they act as antigens in the spread of disease, antibodies in the immune response spurred by disease, or markers of proper organ function and health; testing products to detect and monitor disease progression across a spectrum of therapeutic areas; and specialized diagnostic solutions.