Alignment Healthcare (NASDAQ:ALHC) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to "Buy" Rating

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Alignment Healthcare (NASDAQ:ALHC) from hold to buy, adding to a generally favorable analyst backdrop. The stock now carries a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with an average price target of $24.60.
• The company recently reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $0.05 versus expectations of $0.01 and revenue of $1.24 billion, above estimates. Revenue also rose 33.3% from a year earlier.
• Despite the positive outlook, insider selling has been notable, including sales by President Dawn Christine Maroney and insider Christopher J. Joyce. Institutional investors remain heavily involved, with 86.19% of shares held by funds and other institutions.

Alignment Healthcare (NASDAQ:ALHC - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on ALHC. KeyCorp reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $28.00 target price on shares of Alignment Healthcare in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Alignment Healthcare from $18.50 to $25.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 16th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Alignment Healthcare from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Alignment Healthcare in a report on Friday, April 17th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $24.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Alignment Healthcare from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $24.60.

Alignment Healthcare Price Performance

Shares of ALHC stock opened at $17.93 on Friday. Alignment Healthcare has a 52-week low of $11.63 and a 52-week high of $23.87. The stock has a market cap of $3.71 billion, a PE ratio of 199.22, a PEG ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a current ratio of 1.58. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $19.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $19.47.

Alignment Healthcare (NASDAQ:ALHC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $0.05 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.01 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $1.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.22 billion. Alignment Healthcare had a net margin of 0.47% and a return on equity of 11.50%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 33.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted ($0.05) earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Alignment Healthcare will post 0.17 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alignment Healthcare

In other Alignment Healthcare news, President Dawn Christine Maroney sold 30,000 shares of Alignment Healthcare stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.87, for a total value of $626,100.00. Following the sale, the president directly owned 1,028,813 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,471,327.31. The trade was a 2.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Christopher J. Joyce sold 18,013 shares of Alignment Healthcare stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.79, for a total transaction of $320,451.27. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 305,451 shares in the company, valued at $5,433,973.29. The trade was a 5.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 1,474,097 shares of company stock valued at $28,679,550 over the last quarter. 5.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alignment Healthcare

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new stake in Alignment Healthcare in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake in Alignment Healthcare by 87.7% in the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,654 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 773 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Alignment Healthcare in the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. First Horizon Corp acquired a new stake in Alignment Healthcare in the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Alignment Healthcare by 83.8% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,165 shares of the company's stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 987 shares during the last quarter. 86.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alignment Healthcare Company Profile

Alignment Healthcare, Inc NASDAQ: ALHC is a health care company specializing in value-based care for Medicare Advantage beneficiaries. The company leverages an integrated care model that combines in-home clinical services, telehealth capabilities and digital health tools to manage chronic conditions, improve outcomes and enhance patient experience.

At the core of Alignment Healthcare's approach is a proprietary technology platform that aggregates real-time clinical and claims data to support preventive care, risk stratification and personalized care plans.

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