Align Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALGN) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Align Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALGN) have earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have given a hold recommendation, eight have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $267.45.

A number of research firms have recently commented on ALGN. Leerink Partnrs raised shares of Align Technology from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Align Technology from $285.00 to $260.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Piper Sandler cut their target price on shares of Align Technology from $285.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Align Technology from $310.00 to $280.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Leerink Partners raised shares of Align Technology from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $235.00 to $280.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th.

Institutional Trading of Align Technology

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Custom Index Systems LLC grew its stake in shares of Align Technology by 6.7% in the 4th quarter. Custom Index Systems LLC now owns 1,871 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $390,000 after buying an additional 117 shares during the period. Caprock Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Align Technology in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $236,000. Washington Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Align Technology in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $313,000. Swedbank AB grew its stake in shares of Align Technology by 25.0% in the 4th quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 486,267 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $101,392,000 after buying an additional 97,152 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of Align Technology by 41.4% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 803 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $167,000 after buying an additional 235 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.43% of the company’s stock.

Align Technology Stock Performance

Shares of Align Technology stock opened at $234.89 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $222.61 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $227.87. The company has a market cap of $17.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.00 and a beta of 1.67. Align Technology has a fifty-two week low of $196.09 and a fifty-two week high of $335.40.

Align Technology (NASDAQ:ALGN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The medical equipment provider reported $2.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $977.87 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $990.05 million. Align Technology had a net margin of 11.15% and a return on equity of 13.99%. The company’s revenue was up 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.62 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Align Technology will post 7.48 EPS for the current year.

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.