Thompson Investment Management Inc. Sells 63,758 Shares of Exact Sciences Corporation $EXAS

Thompson Investment Management Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Exact Sciences Corporation (NASDAQ:EXAS) by 26.6% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 175,742 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 63,758 shares during the quarter. Exact Sciences accounts for about 2.2% of Thompson Investment Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 5th biggest position. Thompson Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Exact Sciences were worth $17,848,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Westside Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Exact Sciences by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 542 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 271 shares during the period. Quent Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Exact Sciences during the third quarter worth approximately $48,000. True Wealth Design LLC raised its position in shares of Exact Sciences by 61.7% in the fourth quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 983 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $100,000 after buying an additional 375 shares in the last quarter. Bollard Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Exact Sciences in the third quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management boosted its stake in shares of Exact Sciences by 241.2% in the third quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management now owns 1,085 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 767 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.82% of the company’s stock.

Exact Sciences Stock Performance

NASDAQ EXAS opened at $104.91 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $103.32 and its 200 day simple moving average is $87.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -95.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a current ratio of 2.43, a quick ratio of 2.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. Exact Sciences Corporation has a 1 year low of $38.81 and a 1 year high of $104.98.

Exact Sciences (NASDAQ:EXAS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 13th. The medical research company reported ($0.21) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 firm had revenue of $878.38 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $860.59 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.06) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Exact Sciences Corporation will post -0.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on EXAS. Evercore set a $105.00 price target on Exact Sciences and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Zacks Research cut Exact Sciences from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Mizuho reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $105.00 target price (up from $85.00) on shares of Exact Sciences in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Exact Sciences in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, BTIG Research restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Exact Sciences in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. Twenty-one analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $92.13.

About Exact Sciences

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.