Principal Securities Inc. Decreases Stake in Hologic, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOLX)

Principal Securities Inc. lowered its position in Hologic, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOLX) by 32.9% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 1,064 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after selling 521 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc.’s holdings in Hologic were worth $77,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. General Partner Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Hologic during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Groupama Asset Managment lifted its position in shares of Hologic by 9.9% during the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 33,177 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 2,999 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Hologic by 38.3% during the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 484 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd lifted its position in shares of Hologic by 23.8% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 692 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hologic during the 4th quarter worth approximately $60,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Essex D. Mitchell sold 24,856 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.34, for a total value of $1,897,507.04. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 27,957 shares in the company, valued at $2,134,237.38. The trade was a 47.06 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.88% of the company’s stock.

Hologic Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ HOLX opened at $64.36 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.30, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.98. Hologic, Inc. has a one year low of $62.69 and a one year high of $84.67. The company’s fifty day moving average is $69.48 and its two-hundred day moving average is $76.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 2.78 and a current ratio of 3.49.

Hologic (NASDAQ:HOLX) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical equipment provider reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.02 by $0.01. Hologic had a net margin of 18.42% and a return on equity of 19.72%. Analysts forecast that Hologic, Inc. will post 4.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HOLX has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Hologic from $84.00 to $82.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Evercore ISI cut their target price on shares of Hologic from $76.00 to $73.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Needham & Company LLC cut shares of Hologic from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $90.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Leerink Partners cut shares of Hologic from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and cut their target price for the company from $80.00 to $75.00 in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Hologic from $88.00 to $85.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $85.77.

About Hologic

Hologic, Inc develops, manufactures, and supplies diagnostics products, medical imaging systems, and surgical products for women's health through early detection and treatment. The company operates through four segments: Diagnostics, Breast Health, GYN Surgical, and Skeletal Health. It provides Aptima molecular diagnostic assays to detect the infectious microorganisms; Aptima viral load assays for Hepatitis B virus, Hepatitis C virus, human immunodeficiency virus, and human cytomegalo virus; Aptima bacterial vaginosis and candida vaginitis assays for the diagnosis of vaginitis; Aptima SARS-CoV-2 and Panther Fusion SARS-CoV-2 assays to detect SARS-CoV-2; ThinPrep System for cytology applications; and Rapid Fetal Fibronectin Test that assists physicians in assessing the risk of pre-term birth.