Exact Sciences (NASDAQ:EXAS) Sets New 12-Month High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Exact Sciences hit a new 52-week high near $105 during mid-day trading with about 21.6 million shares changing hands.
• Analysts remain largely neutral, with 21 Holds and one Sell, and a MarketBeat average target of $92.13 despite several $105 price targets from individual firms.
• Recent quarter showed mixed results—revenue of $878.4M beat estimates and rose 23.1% year-over-year, but EPS missed at ($0.21) versus a $0.08 consensus and the company reported a negative net margin of 6.4%.

Exact Sciences Corporation (NASDAQ:EXAS - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $104.98 and last traded at $104.91, with a volume of 21562100 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $103.92.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Exact Sciences from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $90.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Monday, November 24th. Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a "hold" rating and set a $105.00 price objective (up from $80.00) on shares of Exact Sciences in a research note on Friday, November 28th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Exact Sciences in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Piper Sandler downgraded shares of Exact Sciences from an "overweight" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $105.00 target price for the company. in a report on Monday, November 24th. Finally, Evercore set a $105.00 price objective on Exact Sciences and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Twenty-one analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $92.13.

Exact Sciences Trading Up 1.0%

The company has a current ratio of 2.43, a quick ratio of 2.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The company has a market cap of $20.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -95.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.41. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $103.06 and its 200 day moving average price is $86.11.

Exact Sciences (NASDAQ:EXAS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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). The firm had revenue of $878.38 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $860.59 million. Exact Sciences had a positive return on equity of 0.53% and a negative net margin of 6.40%.Exact Sciences's revenue for the quarter was up 23.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.06) earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Exact Sciences Corporation will post -0.58 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Exact Sciences

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in EXAS. Principal Securities Inc. increased its position in shares of Exact Sciences by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 3,058 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $311,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. lifted its position in Exact Sciences by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 2,517 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $138,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC increased its stake in Exact Sciences by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,346 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $238,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares in the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management increased its position in shares of Exact Sciences by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 10,248 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,041,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CoreCap Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Exact Sciences by 16.1% in the 4th quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 1,086 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $110,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.82% of the company's stock.

Exact Sciences Company 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.

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