California State Teachers Retirement System Raises Stake in Novanta Inc. $NOVT

Key Points

• California State Teachers Retirement System dramatically increased its Novanta stake by 16,175.1% in the second quarter, acquiring 6.73 million additional shares. It now owns approximately 17.91% of the company, valued at about $1.10 billion.
• Novanta exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.89 EPS versus the $0.83 consensus and revenue of $265.81 million, up 10.3% year over year. The company issued full-year 2026 EPS guidance of $3.68–$3.74.
• Analyst sentiment is generally positive, with an average “Buy” rating and a $194 price target compared with the stock’s reported $146.56 price. CEO Matthijs Glastra separately sold 6,500 shares under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

California State Teachers Retirement System grew its stake in Novanta Inc. (NASDAQ:NOVT - Free Report) by 16,175.1% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,774,818 shares of the technology company's stock after acquiring an additional 6,733,191 shares during the quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System owned about 17.91% of Novanta worth $1,099,146,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new stake in shares of Novanta in the second quarter valued at about $34,000. Danske Bank A S purchased a new position in Novanta during the third quarter worth about $40,000. Allworth Financial LP boosted its holdings in Novanta by 978.4% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 399 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 362 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Novanta by 120.1% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 427 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 233 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Novanta in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.35% of the company's stock.

Novanta Stock Performance

Shares of NOVT stock opened at $146.56 on Friday. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $149.84 and its 200-day moving average price is $143.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 3.79 and a current ratio of 4.57. Novanta Inc. has a one year low of $98.27 and a one year high of $176.38. The firm has a market cap of $5.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 93.95 and a beta of 1.67.

Novanta (NASDAQ:NOVT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The technology company reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $265.81 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $262.30 million. Novanta had a net margin of 6.00% and a return on equity of 10.83%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.76 EPS. Novanta has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.680-3.740 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.950-1.000 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Novanta Inc. will post 3.7 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on NOVT shares. Robert W. Baird set a $194.00 price target on shares of Novanta in a report on Friday, August 7th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Novanta in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Novanta from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Sunday, August 9th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Novanta from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $194.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Novanta news, CEO Matthijs Glastra sold 6,500 shares of Novanta stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.13, for a total value of $1,047,345.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 29,761 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,795,389.93. The trade was a 17.93% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 1.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Novanta

Novanta Inc is a technology company that develops and supplies equipment and components used in medical and advanced industrial applications. The company primarily serves original equipment manufacturers, integrating its technologies into systems used by healthcare providers, life sciences organizations and industrial customers.

Novanta's product portfolio includes medical technologies such as surgical visualization systems, insufflation and fluid-management equipment, and other components used in minimally invasive procedures.

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