Exact Sciences Corporation (NASDAQ:EXAS) Receives Consensus Rating of “Hold” from Brokerages

Shares of Exact Sciences Corporation (NASDAQ:EXAS) have earned an average rating of “Hold” from the twenty-four brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty-one have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $89.5556.

EXAS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Mizuho reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $105.00 target price (up from $85.00) on shares of Exact Sciences in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Exact Sciences from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $90.00 to $105.00 in a report on Monday, November 24th. Evercore set a $105.00 target price on Exact Sciences and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Leerink Partners lowered Exact Sciences from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective (up previously from $85.00) on shares of Exact Sciences in a report on Thursday, November 20th.

Exact Sciences Price Performance

Shares of EXAS stock opened at $103.24 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $19.70 billion, a P/E ratio of -93.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.42. Exact Sciences has a fifty-two week low of $38.81 and a fifty-two week high of $103.54. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $102.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $76.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 2.44 and a current ratio of 2.72.

Exact Sciences (NASDAQ:EXAS) last announced its earnings results on Friday, February 13th. The medical research company reported ($0.21) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.08 by ($0.29). Exact Sciences had a negative net margin of 6.40% and a positive return on equity of 0.53%. The business had revenue of $878.38 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $860.59 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($0.06) EPS. Exact Sciences’s revenue was up 23.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Exact Sciences will post -0.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Exact Sciences

In related news, EVP Jacob A. Orville sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.00, for a total transaction of $375,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 23,237 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,742,775. The trade was a 17.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Exact Sciences

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Slotnik Capital LLC bought a new position in Exact Sciences during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,499,000. Yakira Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Exact Sciences in the fourth quarter worth $7,924,000. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Exact Sciences by 7.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 16,492 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,675,000 after acquiring an additional 1,184 shares in the last quarter. P Schoenfeld Asset Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Exact Sciences in the 4th quarter worth about $6,916,000. Finally, Mariner LLC boosted its stake in Exact Sciences by 110.6% in the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 109,131 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $11,086,000 after purchasing an additional 57,323 shares in the last quarter. 88.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Exact Sciences Company Profile

Exact Sciences Corporation is a molecular diagnostics company headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin, dedicated to the early detection and prevention of cancer. The company’s flagship product, Cologuard®, is a noninvasive, stool-based DNA screening test for colorectal cancer that was developed in collaboration with the Mayo Clinic. By combining DNA mutation analysis with hemoglobin detection, Cologuard aims to improve screening adherence and identify cancers and precancerous lesions in average-risk adults.

Since its founding in 1995, Exact Sciences has expanded its portfolio through strategic acquisitions and internal research and development.