Citigroup Inc. Acquires 197,317 Shares of Align Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALGN)

Key Points

• Citigroup Inc. increased its stake in Align Technology by 333.4% in the 1st quarter, now owning approximately 256,492 shares valued at $40.7 million.
• Align Technology stock recently reported a 3.6% decline, alongside a quarterly earnings miss of $2.49 per share against an expectation of $2.57.
• The company has authorized a stock buyback of up to $1.00 billion, allowing it to repurchase about 7.9% of its outstanding shares, indicating the board’s belief in the stock's undervaluation.

Citigroup Inc. increased its stake in shares of Align Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALGN - Free Report) by 333.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 256,492 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after buying an additional 197,317 shares during the quarter. Citigroup Inc. owned 0.35% of Align Technology worth $40,746,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ALGN. Ninety One UK Ltd boosted its position in Align Technology by 58.7% in the first quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 1,937,555 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $307,800,000 after purchasing an additional 716,954 shares during the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its position in Align Technology by 510.3% in the first quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 707,514 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $112,396,000 after purchasing an additional 591,588 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its position in Align Technology by 4,217.3% in the first quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 426,205 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $67,707,000 after purchasing an additional 416,333 shares during the last quarter. Senvest Management LLC boosted its position in Align Technology by 58.1% in the fourth quarter. Senvest Management LLC now owns 726,243 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $151,429,000 after purchasing an additional 267,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Align Technology in the fourth quarter worth $42,243,000. Institutional investors own 88.43% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on ALGN shares. HSBC cut Align Technology from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $290.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Hsbc Global Res cut Align Technology from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. UBS Group dropped their price target on Align Technology from $240.00 to $215.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and set a $154.00 price target (down previously from $249.00) on shares of Align Technology in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Mizuho set a $210.00 price target on Align Technology in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $215.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Joseph M. Hogan bought 7,576 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The stock was bought at an average cost of $131.49 per share, for a total transaction of $996,168.24. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 184,945 shares of the company's stock, valued at $24,318,418.05. The trade was a 4.27% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.66% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Align Technology Price Performance

NASDAQ ALGN traded down $2.86 during trading on Thursday, reaching $142.88. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,285,881 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,222,127. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.36 billion, a PE ratio of 24.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.61. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $180.70 and a 200 day moving average of $180.79. Align Technology, Inc. has a one year low of $127.70 and a one year high of $262.87.

Align Technology (NASDAQ:ALGN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.49 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.57 by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.06 billion. Align Technology had a return on equity of 13.36% and a net margin of 11.04%. Align Technology's revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.41 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Align Technology, Inc. will post 7.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Align Technology announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, May 6th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the medical equipment provider to reacquire up to 7.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Align Technology Company Profile

Align Technology, Inc designs, manufactures, and markets Invisalign clear aligners, and iTero intraoral scanners and services for orthodontists and general practitioner dentists in the United States, Switzerland, and internationally. The company's Clear Aligner segment offers comprehensive products, including Invisalign comprehensive package that addresses the orthodontic needs of younger patients, such as mandibular advancement, compliance indicators, and compensation for tooth eruption; and Invisalign First Phase I and Invisalign First Comprehensive Phase 2 package for younger patients generally between the ages of six and ten years, which is a mixture of primary/baby and permanent teeth.