QuidelOrtho Corporation (NASDAQ:QDEL) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Reduce” by Analysts

Shares of QuidelOrtho Corporation (NASDAQ:QDEL) have earned an average rating of “Reduce” from the seven brokerages that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have assigned a hold recommendation and two have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $38.20.

A number of equities research analysts have commented on QDEL shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on QuidelOrtho from $26.00 to $22.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 7th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of QuidelOrtho from $26.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $33.00 price target (down previously from $40.00) on shares of QuidelOrtho in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of QuidelOrtho in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered QuidelOrtho from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, October 13th.

Insider Activity at QuidelOrtho

In other news, CEO Brian J. Blaser acquired 23,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 19th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $21.34 per share, with a total value of $501,490.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 29,533 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $630,234.22. This trade represents a 389.52% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Joseph M. Busky acquired 4,770 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 24th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $26.06 per share, with a total value of $124,306.20. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 6,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $180,335.20. This trade represents a 221.86% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders acquired 29,390 shares of company stock worth $657,340. Insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On QuidelOrtho

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. purchased a new position in shares of QuidelOrtho during the 3rd quarter worth $213,000. Verition Fund Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of QuidelOrtho by 52.6% in the 3rd quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 69,736 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,054,000 after acquiring an additional 24,031 shares during the last quarter. Newtyn Management LLC grew its stake in QuidelOrtho by 58.3% during the 3rd quarter. Newtyn Management LLC now owns 2,700,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $79,515,000 after buying an additional 994,332 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC purchased a new position in QuidelOrtho during the 3rd quarter worth $10,932,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in QuidelOrtho by 322.2% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,330 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 1,015 shares during the period. 99.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

QuidelOrtho Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of QuidelOrtho stock opened at $29.06 on Tuesday. QuidelOrtho has a 1 year low of $19.50 and a 1 year high of $49.45. The firm has a market cap of $1.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.71 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a 50-day moving average of $26.39 and a 200 day moving average of $27.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.78 and a quick ratio of 0.98.

QuidelOrtho (NASDAQ:QDEL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The company reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.29. The firm had revenue of $699.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $667.45 million. QuidelOrtho had a positive return on equity of 5.75% and a negative net margin of 42.53%.QuidelOrtho’s quarterly revenue was down 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.85 EPS. QuidelOrtho has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.000-2.150 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that QuidelOrtho will post 2.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About QuidelOrtho

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.