iA Global Asset Management Inc. Has $3.47 Million Stake in Exact Sciences Corporation (NASDAQ:EXAS)

Key Points

• iA Global Asset Management Inc. has increased its stake in Exact Sciences Corporation by 10.2%, now owning a total of 80,188 shares valued at approximately $3.471 million.
• Several institutional investors, including Price T. Rowe Associates and Mackenzie Financial Corp, have also significantly increased their holdings in Exact Sciences, showcasing strong institutional interest.
• Exact Sciences has seen a variety of analyst upgrades, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $70.50, indicating positive market sentiment.

iA Global Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Exact Sciences Corporation (NASDAQ:EXAS - Free Report) by 10.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 80,188 shares of the medical research company's stock after buying an additional 7,436 shares during the period. iA Global Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Exact Sciences were worth $3,471,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Empire Life Investments Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Exact Sciences by 21.1% in the first quarter. Empire Life Investments Inc. now owns 293,878 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $12,722,000 after purchasing an additional 51,113 shares in the last quarter. Generali Investments Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych raised its position in Exact Sciences by 25.0% during the first quarter. Generali Investments Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych now owns 30,000 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,299,000 after buying an additional 6,000 shares during the period. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in Exact Sciences in the 1st quarter worth about $20,803,000. Blueshift Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Exact Sciences in the 1st quarter worth about $206,000. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd boosted its position in Exact Sciences by 95.8% during the 1st quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 926 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 453 shares during the period. 88.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Exact Sciences news, Director Katherine S. Zanotti sold 3,207 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.20, for a total value of $170,612.40. Following the sale, the director owned 72,759 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,870,778.80. This trade represents a 4.22% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Exact Sciences Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ EXAS traded down $2.17 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $40.99. 6,210,297 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,127,436. Exact Sciences Corporation has a one year low of $38.81 and a one year high of $72.83. The company's 50 day moving average is $51.55 and its 200 day moving average is $50.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 2.89 and a quick ratio of 2.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.76 billion, a P/E ratio of -7.55, a P/E/G ratio of 9.22 and a beta of 0.93.

Exact Sciences (NASDAQ:EXAS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The medical research company reported $0.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.02) by $0.24. The firm had revenue of $811.09 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $774.43 million. Exact Sciences had a negative net margin of 34.19% and a negative return on equity of 1.75%. The business's revenue was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($0.09) EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Exact Sciences Corporation will post -0.58 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on EXAS shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $46.00 target price (down previously from $54.00) on shares of Exact Sciences in a report on Thursday. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Exact Sciences from $61.00 to $53.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Exact Sciences from $65.00 to $55.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on shares of Exact Sciences from $68.00 to $64.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Finally, Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Exact Sciences in a research note on Thursday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $68.62.

Exact Sciences Company Profile

Exact Sciences Corporation provides cancer screening and diagnostic test products in the United States and internationally. The company offers Cologuard, a non-invasive stool-based DNA screening test to detect DNA and hemoglobin biomarkers associated with colorectal cancer and pre-cancer. It also provides Oncotype DX Breast Recurrence Score Test; Oncotype DX Breast DCIS Score Test; Oncotype DX Colon Recurrence Score Test; OncoExTra Test for tumor profiling for patients with advanced, metastatic, refractory, relapsed, or recurrent cancer; and Covid-19 testing services.