STAAR Surgical (NASDAQ:STAA) Upgraded to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded STAAR Surgical from “hold” to “buy.” Analyst views remain mixed overall, with MarketBeat reporting a consensus “hold” rating and an average price target of $29.
• The company reported quarterly EPS of $0.11, beating the $0.05 consensus, and revenue of $83.41 million, above estimates. Revenue was nevertheless down 11.9% year over year.
• STAAR Surgical’s board authorized a $50 million share-repurchase program, covering up to 5.2% of outstanding shares; the article also reports the stock trading down 5.7%.

STAAR Surgical (NASDAQ:STAA - Get Free Report) was upgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note issued on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other brokerages have also weighed in on STAA. Zacks Research upgraded shares of STAAR Surgical from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, October 19th. Veritas Investment Research set a $31.00 price objective on shares of STAAR Surgical in a research report on Tuesday, September 29th. Wedbush decreased their target price on shares of STAAR Surgical from $40.00 to $37.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Piper Sandler reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of STAAR Surgical in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on shares of STAAR Surgical from $28.00 to $23.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, September 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $29.00.

STAAR Surgical Trading Down 5.7%

Shares of STAA stock opened at $25.21 on Friday. STAAR Surgical has a twelve month low of $15.59 and a twelve month high of $35.87. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $22.70 and a 200 day moving average price of $23.66. The company has a market capitalization of $1.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2,521,000.00 and a beta of 1.22.

STAAR Surgical (NASDAQ:STAA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The medical instruments supplier reported $0.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.05 by $0.06. STAAR Surgical had a return on equity of 9.05% and a net margin of 1.13%. The company had revenue of $83.41 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $78.73 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.08 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that STAAR Surgical will post 0.39 earnings per share for the current year.

STAAR Surgical announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, September 24th that authorizes the company to buy back $50 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the medical instruments supplier to repurchase up to 5.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in STAA. State of Wyoming purchased a new position in shares of STAAR Surgical in the 3rd quarter valued at $66,000. Ascentis Independent Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of STAAR Surgical in the first quarter worth about $77,000. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in STAAR Surgical by 2,867.1% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 11,008 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $206,000 after buying an additional 10,637 shares in the last quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of STAAR Surgical during the 2nd quarter worth about $209,000. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System acquired a new stake in STAAR Surgical in the 2nd quarter valued at about $235,000. 96.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About STAAR Surgical

STAAR Surgical is a medical device company focused on ophthalmic surgery and vision correction. The company develops, manufactures and markets implantable lenses and related products designed to reduce or eliminate dependence on glasses or contact lenses.

Its principal product line is the EVO Visian Implantable Collamer Lens (ICL), a lens implanted inside the eye to correct myopia, with or without astigmatism. Unlike procedures that remove corneal tissue, ICL surgery preserves the eye's natural lens and is designed to be removable.

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