Novanta (NASDAQ:NOVT) Stock Price Down 8.8% on Insider Selling

Shares of Novanta Inc. (NASDAQ:NOVT) fell 8.8% during mid-day trading on Tuesday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $153.83 and last traded at $150.4350. 49,353 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 89% from the average session volume of 464,784 shares. The stock had previously closed at $164.89.

Specifically, CEO Matthijs Glastra sold 6,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.13, for a total value of $1,047,345.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 29,761 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,795,389.93. This trade represents a 17.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on NOVT shares. Robert W. Baird set a $180.00 price target on Novanta in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Novanta from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Novanta in a research report on Friday, April 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Novanta has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $180.00.

Novanta Trading Up 0.5%

The company has a current ratio of 3.56, a quick ratio of 2.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $154.02 and a 200 day simple moving average of $137.94. The company has a market cap of $5.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 107.67 and a beta of 1.67.

Novanta (NASDAQ:NOVT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 11th. The technology company reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.78 by $0.03. Novanta had a return on equity of 12.06% and a net margin of 5.35%.The business had revenue of $257.71 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $253.40 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.74 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. Novanta has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.500-3.650 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.810-0.860 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Novanta Inc. will post 3.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Novanta

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its holdings in shares of Novanta by 12.8% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 778 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $92,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in Novanta by 22.4% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 541 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $64,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares during the period. State of Michigan Retirement System grew its holdings in Novanta by 1.2% during the first quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 8,600 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,016,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. HB Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Novanta by 9.0% during the first quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,989 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $235,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its position in Novanta by 1.6% during the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 10,746 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,269,000 after acquiring an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. 98.35% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Novanta

Novanta, Inc (NASDAQ: NOVT) is a global technology company that designs and manufactures precision components, subsystems and software used in advanced photonics and motion control applications. The company serves customers in the medical device and advanced industrial markets, supplying critical technologies for diagnostics and therapeutic systems, semiconductor and electronics manufacturing, and scientific instrumentation. Novanta’s product portfolio includes laser control modules, optics, beam delivery systems, high-precision motors, actuators, stages, and fluidics solutions designed to meet stringent accuracy and reliability requirements.

Novanta’s Photonics segment delivers laser and energy delivery components that enable minimally invasive surgical procedures and diagnostic imaging.