Artivion, Inc. $AORT Shares Bought by Next Century Growth Investors LLC

Key Points

• Next Century Growth Investors LLC increased its stake in Artivion, Inc. by 107.6%, holding 1,022,775 shares now valued at approximately $25.14 million.
• Artivion has received a consensus rating of Buy from analysts, with an average price target of $40.63, reflecting positive growth outlook.
• Despite its recent performance, Artivion stock is currently down 0.6%, trading at around $43.75, with a market capitalization of $2.06 billion.

Next Century Growth Investors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Artivion, Inc. (NYSE:AORT - Free Report) by 107.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,022,775 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 530,122 shares during the period. Artivion comprises approximately 2.2% of Next Century Growth Investors LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Next Century Growth Investors LLC owned approximately 2.40% of Artivion worth $25,140,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of AORT. Peregrine Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Artivion during the first quarter worth $7,650,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Artivion in the fourth quarter worth $5,573,000. First Trust Advisors LP bought a new stake in shares of Artivion in the fourth quarter worth $4,771,000. Thornburg Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Artivion in the first quarter worth $3,261,000. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new stake in shares of Artivion in the first quarter worth $3,162,000. 86.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AORT has been the topic of several analyst reports. Oppenheimer reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Artivion in a research note on Friday, August 8th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH cut shares of Artivion from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price target for the company from $32.00 to $38.80 in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Wall Street Zen raised Artivion from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday. Citizens Jmp raised Artivion to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, JMP Securities boosted their price objective on Artivion from $33.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $40.63.

Artivion Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:AORT opened at $43.75 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -104.17 and a beta of 1.64. The business's 50-day moving average is $34.51 and its 200-day moving average is $29.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 4.78 and a quick ratio of 3.48. Artivion, Inc. has a 1 year low of $21.97 and a 1 year high of $45.07.

Artivion (NYSE:AORT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $0.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.11 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $112.97 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $107.96 million. Artivion had a negative net margin of 4.43% and a positive return on equity of 5.70%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 15.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Artivion has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Artivion, Inc. will post 0.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Artivion

In other news, insider John E. Davis sold 10,802 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.67, for a total transaction of $471,723.34. Following the transaction, the insider owned 208,778 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,117,335.26. This represents a 4.92% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO James P. Mackin sold 12,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.32, for a total transaction of $529,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 852,783 shares in the company, valued at $36,089,776.56. This trade represents a 1.44% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 97,790 shares of company stock worth $3,634,659 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 7.60% of the company's stock.

About Artivion

Artivion, Inc manufactures, processes, and distributes medical devices and implantable human tissues worldwide. The company provides BioGlue, a polymer consisting of bovine blood protein and an agent for cross-linking proteins for cardiac, vascular, neurologic, and pulmonary procedures; cardiac preservation services; PhotoFix, a bovine pericardial patch; and aortic arch stent grafts including E-vita Open Plus and E-vita Open Neo.

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