Align Technology, Inc. $ALGN Shares Purchased by SG Americas Securities LLC

SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in Align Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALGN) by 67.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 232,442 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 93,953 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Align Technology were worth $39,848,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of ALGN. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in Align Technology by 52.2% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,643,221 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $725,039,000 after buying an additional 1,592,848 shares during the period. Holocene Advisors LP acquired a new position in shares of Align Technology in the third quarter worth about $179,035,000. Ruane Cunniff & Goldfarb L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Align Technology in the fourth quarter worth approximately $190,899,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Align Technology during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $155,556,000. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its holdings in shares of Align Technology by 247.3% during the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,005,413 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $156,995,000 after acquiring an additional 715,919 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 88.43% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ALGN has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Align Technology from $169.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Evercore raised their target price on Align Technology from $200.00 to $220.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Citigroup began coverage on Align Technology in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. They set a “buy” rating and a $240.00 price target on the stock. Leerink Partners upped their price target on Align Technology from $225.00 to $230.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Align Technology from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Align Technology has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $205.85.

Align Technology Price Performance

ALGN opened at $168.49 on Wednesday. Align Technology, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $122.00 and a fifty-two week high of $208.30. The business has a 50-day moving average of $173.65 and a 200-day moving average of $172.17. The company has a market capitalization of $12.07 billion, a PE ratio of 28.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.68.

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

Align Technology announced that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Wednesday, April 29th that allows the company to repurchase $200.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the medical equipment provider to purchase up to 1.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.