Short Interest in Hologic, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOLX) Grows By 71.7%

Hologic, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOLX) was the target of a large increase in short interest in February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 8,301,510 shares, an increase of 71.7% from the February 12th total of 4,834,145 shares. Approximately 3.8% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 2,180,670 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.8 days. Based on an average daily volume of 2,180,670 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.8 days. Approximately 3.8% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Evercore downgraded Hologic from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $79.00 to $78.00 in a report on Monday, January 5th. BNP Paribas Exane downgraded Hologic from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $79.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Friday, November 21st. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Hologic in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Argus downgraded shares of Hologic from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and thirteen have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $78.42.

Hologic Price Performance

NASDAQ HOLX opened at $75.12 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.30, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.73. Hologic has a 1-year low of $51.90 and a 1-year high of $75.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 4.04 and a quick ratio of 3.32. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $75.13 and its 200-day moving average price is $72.68.

Hologic (NASDAQ:HOLX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The medical equipment provider reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.09 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $1.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.07 billion. Hologic had a return on equity of 19.58% and a net margin of 13.18%.The business’s revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.87 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Hologic will post 4.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hologic

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in Hologic by 72.5% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 8,340,785 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $543,486,000 after buying an additional 3,505,828 shares during the period. Becker Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Hologic by 20.0% in the third quarter. Becker Capital Management Inc. now owns 81,755 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $5,518,000 after acquiring an additional 13,610 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund raised its position in Hologic by 20.4% in the third quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 172,294 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $11,628,000 after acquiring an additional 29,143 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Hologic by 23.4% during the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 437,338 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $29,516,000 after acquiring an additional 82,894 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Readystate Asset Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Hologic during the 3rd quarter worth $4,161,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.73% of the company’s stock.

About Hologic

Hologic, Inc (NASDAQ: HOLX) is a global medical technology company specializing in women’s health. Headquartered in Marlborough, Massachusetts, the company develops and manufactures diagnostic products, imaging systems and surgical solutions designed to detect, diagnose and treat diseases with a primary focus on breast and skeletal health, gynecological conditions and molecular diagnostics. Its product portfolio includes digital mammography systems, 3D mammography solutions, bone densitometry equipment and molecular assays for infectious disease and oncology applications.

Since its founding in 1985, Hologic has grown through both internal innovation and strategic acquisitions.