Palo Alto Investors LP Acquires New Position in Align Technology, Inc. $ALGN

Palo Alto Investors LP acquired a new stake in shares of Align Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALGN) in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm acquired 31,389 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $5,294,069,000. Align Technology accounts for approximately 0.7% of Palo Alto Investors LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest holding.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sunbelt Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Align Technology by 222.4% in the 4th quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 158 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Align Technology by 77.5% during the 1st quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 158 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Tobam bought a new stake in shares of Align Technology during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Hollencrest Capital Management acquired a new stake in Align Technology in the first quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its position in Align Technology by 1,773.3% in the third quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 281 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 266 shares during the last quarter. 88.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ALGN. Leerink Partners raised their price target on shares of Align Technology from $225.00 to $230.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of Align Technology in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $209.00 price objective for the company. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Align Technology from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Align Technology from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $189.00 target price on shares of Align Technology in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $206.36.

Align Technology Price Performance

NASDAQ:ALGN opened at $158.84 on Friday. Align Technology, Inc. has a one year low of $122.00 and a one year high of $200.43. The company has a market cap of $11.38 billion, a PE ratio of 27.62, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.65. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $173.50 and its 200 day simple moving average is $175.27.

Align Technology (NASDAQ:ALGN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.62 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.05 billion. Align Technology had a net margin of 9.99% and a return on equity of 15.86%. The company’s revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.49 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Align Technology, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Align Technology Company Profile

Align Technology, Inc (NASDAQ: ALGN) pioneered the use of digital technology in orthodontics through the development of the Invisalign system, a series of clear, removable aligners that provide an alternative to traditional metal braces. Since its founding in 1997 by Zia Chishti and Kelsey Wirth, the Tempe, Arizona–based company has expanded its focus to include intraoral scanners, CAD/CAM software for dental laboratories and comprehensive digital dentistry solutions.

The company’s signature Invisalign system leverages 3D imaging and computer-aided design (CAD) to create customized aligners that gradually reposition teeth, improving patient comfort and treatment predictability.