Nuveen LLC Makes New $2.76 Million Investment in STAAR Surgical Company $STAA

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC has invested approximately $2.76 million in STAAR Surgical Company, acquiring 156,747 shares and now owns 0.32% of the company's stock.
• Multiple institutional investors have increased their stakes in STAAR Surgical, highlighting strong interest, with 96.70% of the stock owned by such entities.
• STAAR Surgical announced a share buyback plan worth $30 million, indicating management's belief that the stock is currently undervalued.

Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of STAAR Surgical Company (NASDAQ:STAA - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 156,747 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $2,763,000. Nuveen LLC owned approximately 0.32% of STAAR Surgical as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of STAA. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in STAAR Surgical by 3.0% in the 1st quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 20,978 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $370,000 after purchasing an additional 603 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in STAAR Surgical by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 28,123 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $683,000 after purchasing an additional 1,044 shares in the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in STAAR Surgical by 6.3% in the 4th quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 30,396 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $738,000 after purchasing an additional 1,796 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE lifted its stake in STAAR Surgical by 1,693.0% in the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,044 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 1,930 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bridgefront Capital LLC lifted its stake in STAAR Surgical by 27.2% in the 4th quarter. Bridgefront Capital LLC now owns 10,792 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $262,000 after purchasing an additional 2,306 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.70% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

STAAR Surgical Stock Performance

NASDAQ:STAA traded down $0.04 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $27.70. 51,039 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,225,628. STAAR Surgical Company has a 12-month low of $13.50 and a 12-month high of $38.60. The business has a 50-day moving average of $21.85 and a two-hundred day moving average of $19.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.37 billion, a PE ratio of -14.36 and a beta of 0.74.

STAAR Surgical declared that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Friday, May 16th that authorizes the company to repurchase $30.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the medical instruments supplier to buy up to 3.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

About STAAR Surgical

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.