Wall Street Zen Upgrades Alphatec (NASDAQ:ATEC) to "Buy"

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Alphatec to “Buy” from “Hold,” contributing to a broader consensus “Moderate Buy” rating. Analysts’ average price target is $17.40, although ratings range from “Sell” to “Buy.”
• Alphatec reported quarterly earnings of $0.07 per share, in line with estimates, while revenue of $213.51 million exceeded expectations and increased 15.1% year over year.
• The stock opened at $10.03, with a market capitalization of $1.55 billion. CEO Patrick Miles bought 115,000 shares, while institutional investors own 66.35% of the company.

Alphatec (NASDAQ:ATEC - Get Free Report) was upgraded by Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note issued on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Alphatec in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Stephens began coverage on shares of Alphatec in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $15.00 target price for the company. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Alphatec from $16.00 to $13.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Alphatec from $11.00 to $13.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Alphatec from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Alphatec presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $17.40.

Alphatec Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of Alphatec stock opened at $10.03 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $1.55 billion, a PE ratio of -14.13 and a beta of 0.78. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $9.70 and a 200-day simple moving average of $9.51. Alphatec has a 12 month low of $6.82 and a 12 month high of $23.29.

Alphatec (NASDAQ:ATEC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The medical technology company reported $0.07 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.07. The firm had revenue of $213.51 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $211.26 million. Alphatec had a negative return on equity of 6,752.24% and a negative net margin of 13.49%.Alphatec's quarterly revenue was up 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.02 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Alphatec will post -0.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Patrick Miles purchased 115,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 10th. The shares were bought at an average price of $8.81 per share, with a total value of $1,013,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 5,893,551 shares in the company, valued at $51,922,184.31. This trade represents a 1.99% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel Tyson Marshall sold 8,168 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.65, for a total transaction of $78,821.20. Following the sale, the general counsel directly owned 630,398 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,083,340.70. This represents a 1.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. 13.48% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alphatec

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Next Century Growth Investors LLC grew its stake in shares of Alphatec by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Next Century Growth Investors LLC now owns 2,418,298 shares of the medical technology company's stock worth $50,881,000 after acquiring an additional 138,915 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in shares of Alphatec by 26.9% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,560,971 shares of the medical technology company's stock worth $27,863,000 after acquiring an additional 543,059 shares during the period. Emerald Advisers LLC grew its holdings in shares of Alphatec by 10.4% during the 1st quarter. Emerald Advisers LLC now owns 1,807,307 shares of the medical technology company's stock worth $19,664,000 after purchasing an additional 169,578 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in shares of Alphatec by 11.3% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 708,548 shares of the medical technology company's stock worth $14,908,000 after purchasing an additional 71,933 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Granite Investment Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Alphatec by 4.7% during the first quarter. Granite Investment Partners LLC now owns 1,195,156 shares of the medical technology company's stock valued at $13,003,000 after purchasing an additional 54,043 shares during the period. 66.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Alphatec

Alphatec Holdings, Inc NASDAQ: ATEC is a medical technology company focused on the surgical treatment of spinal disorders. Through its Alphatec Spine business, the company develops and markets implants, biologics, instruments and procedural technologies designed to support spine surgery and improve patient outcomes.

Its product portfolio includes systems for spinal fusion and reconstruction, including interbody implants, fixation devices and navigation or imaging-enabled surgical solutions.

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