Edwards Lifesciences Corporation $EW Stock Sold by Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co.

Key Points

• Lockheed Martin Investment Management cut its Edwards Lifesciences stake by 31.3% in the third quarter, selling 25,820 shares and ending the period with 56,790 shares worth about $4.9 million.
• Company insiders sold 53,326 shares worth approximately $5.43 million over the past three months. The sales were made under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans.
• Edwards beat quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, with EPS of $0.80 and revenue of $1.72 billion; revenue grew 10.5% year over year. Analysts’ average rating is “Moderate Buy,” with an average price target of $108.88.

Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. lowered its stake in Edwards Lifesciences Corporation (NYSE:EW - Free Report) by 31.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 56,790 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 25,820 shares during the period. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co.'s holdings in Edwards Lifesciences were worth $4,902,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of EW. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Edwards Lifesciences in the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. TrinityBridge Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Edwards Lifesciences during the second quarter worth $27,000. GK Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Edwards Lifesciences during the third quarter valued at $26,000. RMG Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Edwards Lifesciences during the first quarter valued at $26,000. Finally, Compass Financial Management LLC bought a new position in Edwards Lifesciences in the second quarter valued at about $32,000. Institutional investors own 79.46% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other Edwards Lifesciences news, VP Donald Bobo, Jr sold 48,900 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.05, for a total value of $5,039,145.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 22,798 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,349,333.90. This represents a 68.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Daniel Lippis sold 619 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.65, for a total transaction of $53,017.35. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 40,034 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,428,912.10. This trade represents a 1.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 53,326 shares of company stock worth $5,433,775 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on EW. Robert W. Baird upgraded Edwards Lifesciences from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $116.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 5th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Edwards Lifesciences from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 5th. Leerink Partners raised their target price on shares of Edwards Lifesciences from $101.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 5th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $113.00 price target (up from $100.00) on shares of Edwards Lifesciences in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Edwards Lifesciences from $110.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 5th. Twenty-three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Edwards Lifesciences has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $108.88.

Edwards Lifesciences Price Performance

Shares of EW opened at $104.72 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $60.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 59.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.85. Edwards Lifesciences Corporation has a 1 year low of $74.66 and a 1 year high of $105.37. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $89.21 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $85.88. The company has a current ratio of 4.52, a quick ratio of 3.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

Edwards Lifesciences (NYSE:EW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The medical research company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $1.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.68 billion. Edwards Lifesciences had a return on equity of 16.25% and a net margin of 15.30%. Edwards Lifesciences's revenue was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.67 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Edwards Lifesciences Corporation will post 3.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Edwards Lifesciences Profile

Edwards Lifesciences is a medical technology company focused on therapies for structural heart disease and critical care. Its products include transcatheter and surgical heart valves, as well as technologies used to monitor patients during intensive care and surgery.

The company traces its origins to 1958, when engineer Lowell Edwards and surgeon Albert Starr began developing an artificial heart valve. Their work led to the Starr-Edwards valve, introduced in 1960. Edwards Lifesciences is headquartered in Irvine, California, and serves clinicians and patients around the world.

Its structural heart portfolio includes transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) systems and therapies addressing mitral and tricuspid valve disease.

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