Exact Sciences Corporation $EXAS Shares Sold by AlphaQuest LLC

AlphaQuest LLC cut its position in shares of Exact Sciences Corporation (NASDAQ:EXAS) by 89.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 898 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 7,641 shares during the quarter. AlphaQuest LLC’s holdings in Exact Sciences were worth $49,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of EXAS. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its position in Exact Sciences by 951.8% during the second quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 589 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 533 shares during the last quarter. Country Trust Bank acquired a new position in Exact Sciences during the second quarter worth approximately $32,000. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its position in Exact Sciences by 1,980.6% during the second quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 645 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 614 shares during the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC purchased a new position in Exact Sciences during the third quarter worth approximately $48,000. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management boosted its holdings in Exact Sciences by 241.2% in the third quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management now owns 1,085 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $59,000 after acquiring an additional 767 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.82% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Exact Sciences in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. William Blair downgraded shares of Exact Sciences from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. Barclays restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $105.00 price target (up previously from $77.00) on shares of Exact Sciences in a report on Thursday, November 20th. TD Cowen downgraded shares of Exact Sciences from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective (up previously from $80.00) on shares of Exact Sciences in a research report on Friday, November 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twenty-one have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $89.56.

Exact Sciences Price Performance

Shares of EXAS stock opened at $103.24 on Monday. Exact Sciences Corporation has a twelve month low of $38.81 and a twelve month high of $103.54. The company has a market capitalization of $19.70 billion, a PE ratio of -93.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a current ratio of 2.72, a quick ratio of 2.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $102.10 and a 200-day simple moving average of $75.96.

Exact Sciences (NASDAQ:EXAS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 13th. The medical research company reported ($0.21) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.08 by ($0.29). Exact Sciences had a negative net margin of 6.40% and a positive return on equity of 0.53%. The firm had revenue of $878.38 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $860.59 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.06) earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 23.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Exact Sciences Corporation will post -0.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Jacob A. Orville sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.00, for a total transaction of $375,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 23,237 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,742,775. This represents a 17.71% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Exact Sciences Profile

Exact Sciences Corporation is a molecular diagnostics company headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin, dedicated to the early detection and prevention of cancer. The company’s flagship product, Cologuard®, is a noninvasive, stool-based DNA screening test for colorectal cancer that was developed in collaboration with the Mayo Clinic. By combining DNA mutation analysis with hemoglobin detection, Cologuard aims to improve screening adherence and identify cancers and precancerous lesions in average-risk adults.

Since its founding in 1995, Exact Sciences has expanded its portfolio through strategic acquisitions and internal research and development.