StockNews.com Begins Coverage on Catalent (NYSE:CTLT)

StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Catalent (NYSE:CTLT) in a report released on Thursday. The brokerage set a “sell” rating on the stock.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on CTLT. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $63.50 price target on shares of Catalent in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $63.50 price target on shares of Catalent in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Barclays increased their price target on Catalent from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $63.50 target price (up from $58.00) on shares of Catalent in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $52.46.

Catalent Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CTLT opened at $57.02 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.31 billion, a PE ratio of -8.39, a P/E/G ratio of 6.11 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 2.48 and a quick ratio of 1.73. The business has a 50-day moving average of $56.87 and a two-hundred day moving average of $47.74. Catalent has a 12 month low of $31.45 and a 12 month high of $67.54.

Catalent (NYSE:CTLT) last issued its earnings results on Friday, February 9th. The company reported ($0.24) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by ($0.22). Catalent had a negative return on equity of 2.43% and a negative net margin of 29.91%. The company had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.01 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.62 EPS. Catalent’s quarterly revenue was down 10.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Catalent will post 0.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Catalent

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nomura Holdings Inc. grew its stake in shares of Catalent by 149.4% in the 4th quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. now owns 11,487,342 shares of the company’s stock valued at $516,126,000 after purchasing an additional 6,881,914 shares during the period. Barclays PLC grew its position in Catalent by 578.0% during the 2nd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 3,385,660 shares of the company’s stock worth $146,802,000 after acquiring an additional 2,886,309 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Catalent during the 4th quarter worth approximately $116,021,000. Cadian Capital Management LP grew its position in Catalent by 91.0% during the 3rd quarter. Cadian Capital Management LP now owns 5,304,784 shares of the company’s stock worth $241,527,000 after acquiring an additional 2,526,750 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in Catalent by 40.0% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,427,340 shares of the company’s stock worth $378,641,000 after acquiring an additional 2,408,236 shares during the last quarter.

About Catalent

Catalent, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, develops and manufactures solutions for drugs, protein-based biologics, cell and gene therapies, and consumer health products worldwide. It operates in two segments, Biologics, and Pharma and Consumer Health. The Biologics segment provides formulation, development, and manufacturing for biologic proteins, cell gene, and other nucleic acid therapies; pDNA, iPSCs, oncolytic viruses, and vaccines; formulation, development, and manufacturing for parenteral dose forms, including vials, prefilled syringes, and cartridges; and analytical development and testing services for large molecules.