Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. Takes $3.36 Million Position in STAAR Surgical Company $STAA

Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. acquired a new position in shares of STAAR Surgical Company (NASDAQ:STAA) in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 125,000 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $3,359,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of STAA. Amalgamated Bank lifted its stake in STAAR Surgical by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 14,609 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $393,000 after buying an additional 514 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in STAAR Surgical by 61.4% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,856 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 706 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS raised its holdings in shares of STAAR Surgical by 7.8% in the second quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 12,711 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $213,000 after acquiring an additional 923 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of STAAR Surgical by 0.6% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 150,896 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $4,055,000 after acquiring an additional 956 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of STAAR Surgical by 3.0% in the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 35,175 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $590,000 after acquiring an additional 1,012 shares in the last quarter. 96.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on STAA. BTIG Research reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of STAAR Surgical in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of STAAR Surgical in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Wedbush initiated coverage on shares of STAAR Surgical in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $26.00 target price for the company. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of STAAR Surgical in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on STAAR Surgical in a research note on Friday, January 16th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $13.00 price target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, STAAR Surgical currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $19.21.

STAAR Surgical Price Performance

STAA opened at $17.47 on Friday. STAAR Surgical Company has a 12 month low of $14.69 and a 12 month high of $30.81. The business has a 50-day moving average of $18.78 and a two-hundred day moving average of $23.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $864.94 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.72 and a beta of 1.05.

STAAR Surgical (NASDAQ:STAA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 3rd. The medical instruments supplier reported ($0.37) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.14 by ($0.51). STAAR Surgical had a negative return on equity of 10.03% and a negative net margin of 33.60%.The company had revenue of $57.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $75.54 million. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 18.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that STAAR Surgical Company will post -1.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, major shareholder Broadwood Partners, L.P. purchased 336,946 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 6th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $21.62 per share, with a total value of $7,284,772.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 15,356,437 shares in the company, valued at approximately $332,006,167.94. The trade was a 2.24% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders acquired a total of 1,104,351 shares of company stock valued at $21,690,426 in the last 90 days. 0.59% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About STAAR Surgical

STAAR Surgical Company, together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, markets, and sells implantable lenses for the eye, and companion delivery systems to deliver the lenses into the eye. The company provides implantable Collamer lens product family (ICLs) to treat visual disorders, such as myopia, hyperopia, astigmatism, and presbyopia. It markets its products to health care providers, including ophthalmic surgeons, vision and surgical centers, hospitals, government facilities, and distributors, as well as products are primarily used by ophthalmologists.