STAAR Surgical Company $STAA Stock Position Lifted by Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd.

Key Points

• Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its stake in STAAR Surgical Company by 40.3%, acquiring an additional 26,364 shares, bringing its total ownership to 91,800 shares valued at approximately $1,618,000.
• Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 96.70% of STAAR Surgical's stock, with several firms significantly increasing their positions in the first quarter.
• Several analysts have given STAAR Surgical a consensus rating of "Hold", with price targets indicating a potential upside, the highest being $28.00.

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in STAAR Surgical Company (NASDAQ:STAA - Free Report) by 40.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 91,800 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after buying an additional 26,364 shares during the quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. owned 0.19% of STAAR Surgical worth $1,618,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of STAA. LPL Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of STAAR Surgical by 45.3% in the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 15,994 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $388,000 after buying an additional 4,989 shares in the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its position in STAAR Surgical by 27.2% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 26,081 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $634,000 after purchasing an additional 5,572 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in STAAR Surgical by 7.2% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 202,981 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $4,930,000 after purchasing an additional 13,714 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its position in STAAR Surgical by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 179,270 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $4,354,000 after purchasing an additional 6,622 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of STAAR Surgical in the fourth quarter valued at $923,000. 96.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

STAAR Surgical Trading Up 0.1%

NASDAQ STAA traded up $0.04 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $28.00. 255,983 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,255,167. STAAR Surgical Company has a 1-year low of $13.50 and a 1-year high of $38.60. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $19.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $18.59. The company has a market cap of $1.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -14.51 and a beta of 0.61.

STAAR Surgical announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Friday, May 16th that allows the company to buyback $30.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the medical instruments supplier to reacquire up to 3.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

STAA has been the topic of several recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus set a $28.00 price objective on STAAR Surgical and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price objective on STAAR Surgical from $20.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Piper Sandler upgraded STAAR Surgical to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Mizuho upped their price objective on STAAR Surgical from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of STAAR Surgical in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $20.67.

STAAR Surgical Company Profile

STAAR Surgical Company, together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, markets, and sells implantable lenses for the eye, and companion delivery systems to deliver the lenses into the eye. The company provides implantable Collamer lens product family (ICLs) to treat visual disorders, such as myopia, hyperopia, astigmatism, and presbyopia.