NovoCure (NASDAQ:NVCR) Shares Gap Down – What’s Next?

Shares of NovoCure Limited (NASDAQ:NVCR) gapped down prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $17.85, but opened at $15.03. NovoCure shares last traded at $14.4660, with a volume of 1,135,588 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on NVCR. Weiss Ratings raised NovoCure from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research report on Monday, June 1st. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $46.00 price objective (down from $48.00) on shares of NovoCure in a report on Thursday. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of NovoCure in a report on Friday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on NovoCure from $13.50 to $17.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Wedbush reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $18.00 price objective on shares of NovoCure in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $26.86.

NovoCure Price Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $15.46 and a 200-day moving average of $13.53. The company has a quick ratio of 2.70, a current ratio of 2.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.70 billion, a P/E ratio of -9.58 and a beta of 0.93.

NovoCure (NASDAQ:NVCR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The medical equipment provider reported ($0.62) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.51) by ($0.11). NovoCure had a negative net margin of 25.66% and a negative return on equity of 50.82%. The business had revenue of $174.06 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $167.77 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.31) earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that NovoCure Limited will post -1.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Jeryl L. Hilleman sold 2,945 shares of NovoCure stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.77, for a total value of $46,442.65. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 13,861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $218,587.97. The trade was a 17.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, Director Allyson J. Ocean sold 2,945 shares of NovoCure stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.77, for a total value of $46,442.65. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 11,324 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $178,579.48. This represents a 20.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold a total of 51,943 shares of company stock valued at $893,171 over the last three months. Company insiders own 5.52% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in NovoCure by 56.7% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 28,728 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $512,000 after purchasing an additional 10,394 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in shares of NovoCure by 3.5% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 74,992 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,336,000 after acquiring an additional 2,502 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in shares of NovoCure by 5.5% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 993,670 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $17,707,000 after purchasing an additional 52,180 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of NovoCure in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $87,000. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of NovoCure in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $216,000. 84.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

NovoCure Company Profile

NovoCure is a global oncology company pioneering Tumor Treating Fields (TTFields), a novel anti-mitotic therapy for solid tumors. The company’s non-invasive treatment platforms deliver low-intensity, alternating electric fields designed to disrupt cancer cell division. NovoCure’s approach offers an alternative modality to complement existing therapies in oncology, with a focus on hard-to-treat malignancies.

Founded in 2000 and headquartered in Haifa, Israel, NovoCure maintains a second operational center in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.