Alphatec Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATEC) Short Interest Up 21.8% in April

Alphatec Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATEC - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 13,190,000 shares, a growth of 21.8% from the March 31st total of 10,830,000 shares. Approximately 12.0% of the company's stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,160,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 6.1 days.

Alphatec Stock Up 2.5 %

Shares of Alphatec stock traded up $0.31 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $12.76. The company had a trading volume of 1,379,793 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,080,387. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 30.21, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 2.32. The company has a 50 day moving average of $10.48 and a 200 day moving average of $10.00. Alphatec has a 52-week low of $4.88 and a 52-week high of $12.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.86 billion, a P/E ratio of -9.97 and a beta of 1.06.

Alphatec (NASDAQ:ATEC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The medical technology company reported ($0.35) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.12) by ($0.23). Alphatec had a negative return on equity of 541.39% and a negative net margin of 31.06%. The firm had revenue of $169.18 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $167.57 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.34) earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 22.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Alphatec will post -1.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Alphatec from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. StockNews.com raised Alphatec from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $20.00 price target on shares of Alphatec in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $15.00 price target (up from $13.00) on shares of Alphatec in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $16.00 price target on shares of Alphatec in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $17.89.

Insider Activity

In other Alphatec news, COO Scott Lish sold 23,183 shares of Alphatec stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.03, for a total transaction of $278,891.49. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 844,494 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,159,262.82. The trade was a 2.67 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Patrick Miles sold 32,393 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.89, for a total transaction of $352,759.77. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 5,940,391 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $64,690,857.99. This represents a 0.54 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 126,945 shares of company stock worth $1,416,352 over the last three months. 22.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Alphatec

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Alphatec by 38,433.3% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,312 shares of the medical technology company's stock valued at $228,000 after buying an additional 2,306 shares during the last quarter. Comerica Bank lifted its position in Alphatec by 66.8% during the fourth quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 3,116 shares of the medical technology company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 1,248 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in Alphatec during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Alphatec by 973.3% during the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,669 shares of the medical technology company's stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 4,234 shares during the period. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Alphatec in the first quarter worth about $54,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 66.35% of the company's stock.

About Alphatec

Alphatec Holdings, Inc, a medical technology company, designs, develops, and advances technologies for the surgical treatment of spinal disorders in the United States and internationally. It manufactures and sells implants and instruments through third-party suppliers. The company offers Alpha InformatiX product platform, including EOS imaging system that provides full-body imaging; VEA alignment mobile application, which leverages EOS technology to more quickly quantify alignment parameters on a mobile device; SafeOp Neural InformatiX System that automates electromyographic and somatosensory evoked potential monitoring; and Valence, an intra-operative system that integrates navigation and robotics into spine procedures, as well as Sigma Prone TransPsoas (PTP) Access and PTP Patient Positioning Systems.