Principal Financial Group Inc. Increases Stock Position in Hologic, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOLX)

Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Hologic, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOLX) by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 269,546 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,419 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.12% of Hologic worth $21,957,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hologic during the second quarter worth about $25,000. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hologic during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Groupama Asset Managment lifted its holdings in shares of Hologic by 9.9% during the third quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 33,177 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 2,999 shares during the period. Sunbelt Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Hologic in the 2nd quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Hologic by 38.3% in the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 484 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 134 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.73% of the company’s stock.

Hologic Stock Performance

Shares of HOLX opened at $72.68 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $77.94 and a two-hundred day moving average of $78.49. The stock has a market cap of $16.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.83, a PEG ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.96. Hologic, Inc. has a 12-month low of $70.36 and a 12-month high of $84.67. 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 posted its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The medical equipment provider reported $1.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01. The firm had revenue of $987.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $978.25 million. Hologic had a return on equity of 19.79% and a net margin of 19.59%. Hologic’s revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.89 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Hologic, Inc. will post 4.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HOLX has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Hologic from $84.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Raymond James boosted their target price on Hologic from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Leerink Partners reduced their price target on Hologic from $95.00 to $90.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. StockNews.com raised Hologic from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Citigroup downgraded Hologic from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $95.00 to $85.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.50.

Insider Activity at Hologic

In related news, COO Essex D. Mitchell sold 24,856 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 27,957 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,134,237.38. This represents a 47.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.75% of the company’s stock.

Hologic Company Profile

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.