Ameriprise Financial Inc. Sells 4,688 Shares of Align Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALGN)

Ameriprise Financial Inc. decreased its holdings in Align Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALGN) by 13.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 29,913 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after selling 4,688 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc.’s holdings in Align Technology were worth $6,237,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of ALGN. Algert Global LLC grew its holdings in shares of Align Technology by 259.1% in the fourth quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 7,262 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $1,514,000 after acquiring an additional 5,240 shares during the period. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Align Technology by 12.5% in the fourth quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 606,042 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $126,366,000 after acquiring an additional 67,124 shares during the period. ArrowMark Colorado Holdings LLC grew its holdings in shares of Align Technology by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. ArrowMark Colorado Holdings LLC now owns 115,104 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $24,000,000 after acquiring an additional 5,518 shares during the period. Wahed Invest LLC grew its holdings in shares of Align Technology by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Wahed Invest LLC now owns 1,924 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $401,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the period. Finally, Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV bought a new stake in shares of Align Technology in the fourth quarter worth $400,000. Institutional investors own 88.43% of the company’s stock.

Align Technology Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of Align Technology stock opened at $170.80 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $170.98 and its 200-day simple moving average is $197.75. Align Technology, Inc. has a 52 week low of $141.74 and a 52 week high of $271.59. The company has a market capitalization of $12.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.45, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.68.

Align Technology (NASDAQ:ALGN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.00 by $0.13. Align Technology had a return on equity of 13.84% and a net margin of 10.54%. The business had revenue of $979.26 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $977.90 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.14 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Align Technology, Inc. will post 7.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Align Technology announced that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, May 6th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the medical equipment provider to repurchase up to 7.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on ALGN. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Align Technology from $280.00 to $272.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $250.00 price objective (up previously from $235.00) on shares of Align Technology in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Mizuho cut their price objective on Align Technology from $250.00 to $245.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Hsbc Global Res downgraded Align Technology from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Align Technology from $165.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $241.25.

About Align Technology

Align Technology, Inc designs, manufactures, and markets Invisalign clear aligners, and iTero intraoral scanners and services for orthodontists and general practitioner dentists in the United States, Switzerland, and internationally. The company's Clear Aligner segment offers comprehensive products, including Invisalign comprehensive package that addresses the orthodontic needs of younger patients, such as mandibular advancement, compliance indicators, and compensation for tooth eruption; and Invisalign First Phase I and Invisalign First Comprehensive Phase 2 package for younger patients generally between the ages of six and ten years, which is a mixture of primary/baby and permanent teeth.