11,582 Shares in Align Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALGN) Acquired by Van ECK Associates Corp

Van ECK Associates Corp bought a new stake in Align Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALGN) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 11,582 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,415,000.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Align Technology by 49.0% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,634,600 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $670,031,000 after buying an additional 866,663 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Align Technology by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,750,805 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $443,810,000 after buying an additional 21,605 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its holdings in Align Technology by 43.0% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,221,831 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $310,736,000 after buying an additional 367,508 shares in the last quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd grew its holdings in Align Technology by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 1,220,601 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $254,508,000 after buying an additional 43,524 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN grew its holdings in Align Technology by 6.4% in the 3rd quarter. Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN now owns 753,026 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $191,510,000 after buying an additional 45,484 shares in the last quarter. 88.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Align Technology Trading Down 1.8 %

ALGN opened at $198.06 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $215.95 and its 200 day moving average price is $224.29. Align Technology, Inc. has a 12-month low of $196.09 and a 12-month high of $335.40. The firm has a market cap of $14.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.30, a PEG ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.67.

Align Technology (NASDAQ:ALGN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical equipment provider reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.43 by ($0.47). Align Technology had a net margin of 10.54% and a return on equity of 13.84%. On average, research analysts forecast that Align Technology, Inc. will post 7.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ALGN has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Leerink Partners raised Align Technology from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the company from $235.00 to $280.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Align Technology from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Bank of America upped their price target on Align Technology from $200.00 to $206.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Leerink Partnrs raised Align Technology from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on Align Technology from $285.00 to $275.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Align Technology presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $269.91.

Align Technology Company Profile

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.