Align Technology (NASDAQ:ALGN) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Align Technology (NASDAQ:ALGN) from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

ALGN has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Align Technology from $246.00 to $199.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Align Technology from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on Align Technology from $250.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $154.00 price objective (down previously from $249.00) on shares of Align Technology in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Mizuho set a $210.00 price objective on Align Technology in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $215.00.

Align Technology Stock Performance

ALGN stock opened at $128.70 on Tuesday. Align Technology has a 1 year low of $122.00 and a 1 year high of $246.19. The firm has a market cap of $9.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.70. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $141.67 and a 200-day simple moving average of $165.94.

Align Technology (NASDAQ:ALGN) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.57 by ($0.08). Align Technology had a net margin of 11.04% and a return on equity of 13.36%. The company had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.06 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.41 EPS. Align Technology’s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Align Technology has set its Q3 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Align Technology will post 7.98 EPS for the current year.

Align Technology declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, August 5th that permits the company to repurchase $200.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the medical equipment provider to buy up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Align Technology

In other news, CEO Joseph M. Hogan bought 7,576 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The stock was bought at an average price of $131.49 per share, for a total transaction of $996,168.24. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 184,945 shares in the company, valued at $24,318,418.05. The trade was a 4.27% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.66% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Align Technology by 12,032.8% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 125,817 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $19,987,000 after purchasing an additional 124,780 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its holdings in shares of Align Technology by 9.3% in the 1st quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 147,063 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $23,362,000 after purchasing an additional 12,551 shares during the last quarter. Czech National Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Align Technology by 5.9% in the 1st quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 16,117 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $2,560,000 after purchasing an additional 901 shares during the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Align Technology by 83.9% in the 1st quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 2,871 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $456,000 after purchasing an additional 1,310 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gateway Investment Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Align Technology by 20.8% in the 1st quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 1,428 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $227,000 after purchasing an additional 246 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.43% of the company’s stock.

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.