QuidelOrtho (NASDAQ:QDEL) Shares Gap Up Following Analyst Upgrade

Shares of QuidelOrtho Co. (NASDAQ:QDEL) gapped up before the market opened on Thursday after UBS Group raised their price target on the stock from $43.00 to $45.00. The stock had previously closed at $39.94, but opened at $43.80. UBS Group currently has a neutral rating on the stock. QuidelOrtho shares last traded at $41.52, with a volume of 324,626 shares trading hands.

QDEL has been the topic of several other reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of QuidelOrtho from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. William Blair reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of QuidelOrtho in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Citigroup upgraded QuidelOrtho from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $44.00 to $50.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of QuidelOrtho in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $43.00 price objective for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $52.71.

Insider Transactions at QuidelOrtho

In related news, CEO Brian J. Blaser bought 6,033 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $41.42 per share, with a total value of $249,886.86. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 6,033 shares in the company, valued at approximately $249,886.86. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder Carlyle Group Inc. sold 8,260,183 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.31, for a total value of $291,667,061.73. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On QuidelOrtho

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in QDEL. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in QuidelOrtho in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in shares of QuidelOrtho by 188.0% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,293 shares of the company’s stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 844 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of QuidelOrtho during the 4th quarter valued at about $74,000. KBC Group NV grew its holdings in shares of QuidelOrtho by 122.9% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,437 shares of the company’s stock valued at $153,000 after purchasing an additional 1,895 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in QuidelOrtho by 4,460.0% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 4,560 shares of the company’s stock worth $208,000 after purchasing an additional 4,460 shares during the last quarter. 99.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

QuidelOrtho Stock Up 4.1 %

The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $43.28 and its 200 day simple moving average is $42.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The company has a market capitalization of $2.80 billion, a PE ratio of -1.48 and a beta of 0.08.

QuidelOrtho (NASDAQ:QDEL) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.63 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.07 by ($0.44). QuidelOrtho had a negative net margin of 66.25% and a positive return on equity of 4.24%. As a group, analysts anticipate that QuidelOrtho Co. will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

QuidelOrtho Company Profile

QuidelOrtho Corporation provides diagnostic testing solutions. The company operates through Labs, Transfusion Medicine, Point-of-Care, and Molecular Diagnostics business units. The Labs business unit provides clinical chemistry laboratory instruments and tests that measure target chemicals in bodily fluids for the evaluation of health and the clinical management of patients; immunoassay laboratory instruments and tests, which measure proteins as they act as antigens in the spread of disease, antibodies in the immune response spurred by disease, or markers of proper organ function and health; testing products to detect and monitor disease progression across a spectrum of therapeutic areas; and specialized diagnostic solutions.