Taikang Asset Management Hong Kong Co Ltd Purchases Shares of 36,473 Align Technology, Inc. $ALGN

Taikang Asset Management Hong Kong Co Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Align Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALGN) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 36,473 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $5,695,000. Taikang Asset Management Hong Kong Co Ltd owned approximately 0.05% of Align Technology as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ALGN. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Align Technology by 0.7% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,301,611 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,039,528,000 after buying an additional 58,546 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its stake in shares of Align Technology by 52.2% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,643,221 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $725,039,000 after buying an additional 1,592,848 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Align Technology by 37.4% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,497,535 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $187,521,000 after buying an additional 407,559 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its stake in shares of Align Technology by 13.2% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 1,490,503 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $232,742,000 after buying an additional 173,641 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP bought a new position in shares of Align Technology during the third quarter valued at about $179,035,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.43% of the company’s stock.

Align Technology Price Performance

NASDAQ ALGN opened at $179.52 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.86 billion, a PE ratio of 30.12, a PEG ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.67. Align Technology, Inc. has a 1 year low of $122.00 and a 1 year high of $208.30. The business’s 50-day moving average is $173.31 and its 200 day moving average is $171.24.

Align Technology (NASDAQ:ALGN) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.26 by $0.32. The company had revenue of $1.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.02 billion. Align Technology had a return on equity of 15.82% and a net margin of 10.50%.Align Technology’s quarterly revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.13 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Align Technology, Inc. will post 9.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Align Technology announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, April 29th that permits the company to buyback $200.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the medical equipment provider to repurchase up to 1.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on ALGN shares. Barclays raised Align Technology from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $200.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. Evercore raised their price objective on Align Technology from $200.00 to $220.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Align Technology from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Zacks Research raised Align Technology from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Align Technology from $169.00 to $188.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $205.85.

About Align Technology

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.