Royce & Associates LP Has $16.90 Million Holdings in Artivion, Inc. (NYSE:AORT)

Key Points

• Royce & Associates LP reduced its stake in Artivion, Inc. by 17.3%, holding about 1.61% of the company worth $16.90 million after selling 143,580 shares in the first quarter.
• Artivion's stock recently traded at $31.43, having a market cap of $1.34 billion with a significant PE ratio of -62.85.
• Analysts have given Artivion an average rating of "Buy" and set a target price of approximately $32.40, with several upgrades recommending a "strong buy" status.

Royce & Associates LP lessened its stake in Artivion, Inc. (NYSE:AORT - Free Report) by 17.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 687,420 shares of the company's stock after selling 143,580 shares during the quarter. Royce & Associates LP owned about 1.61% of Artivion worth $16,897,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AORT. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Artivion in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $275,000. Natixis Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Artivion in the fourth quarter worth approximately $310,000. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in Artivion by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 57,771 shares of the company's stock worth $1,652,000 after acquiring an additional 2,764 shares during the period. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in Artivion in the fourth quarter worth approximately $194,000. Finally, LPL Financial LLC grew its position in Artivion by 10.9% in the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 19,623 shares of the company's stock worth $561,000 after acquiring an additional 1,925 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.37% of the company's stock.

Artivion Stock Performance

AORT stock traded up $0.38 during trading on Friday, hitting $31.43. The company had a trading volume of 233,009 shares, compared to its average volume of 314,749. The firm has a market cap of $1.34 billion, a PE ratio of -62.85 and a beta of 1.62. Artivion, Inc. has a 1-year low of $21.97 and a 1-year high of $32.94. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $30.07 and a 200-day moving average price of $27.87. The company has a quick ratio of 3.95, a current ratio of 5.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08.

Artivion (NYSE:AORT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The company reported $0.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.12 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $98.98 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $94.81 million. Artivion had a positive return on equity of 3.63% and a negative net margin of 5.49%. On average, analysts expect that Artivion, Inc. will post 0.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AORT has been the subject of several analyst reports. Citizens Jmp upgraded Artivion to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $32.00 target price on shares of Artivion in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Canaccord Genuity Group began coverage on Artivion in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $35.00 target price for the company. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a "market outperform" rating and issued a $33.00 target price on shares of Artivion in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $32.40.

Insider Buying and Selling at Artivion

In other news, Director Anthony B. Semedo sold 2,600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.47, for a total transaction of $74,022.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 33,059 shares in the company, valued at $941,189.73. This represents a 7.29% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Jean F. Holloway sold 9,926 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.00, for a total value of $287,854.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 187,258 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,430,482. The trade was a 5.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 72,954 shares of company stock worth $2,108,525. 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.