Principal Financial Group Inc. Buys 36,150 Shares of Astrana Health, Inc. $ASTH

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group increased its Astrana Health stake by 15.7%, purchasing 36,150 shares to hold 265,948 shares worth approximately $6.5 million. Institutional investors collectively own 52.77% of ASTH.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive: seven analysts rate Astrana Health a Buy and two rate it Hold, resulting in a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $47.86.
• Astrana Health reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $0.74 versus the $0.29 estimate and revenue of $965.1 million, up 55.6% year over year.

Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Astrana Health, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTH - Free Report) by 15.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 265,948 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 36,150 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.48% of Astrana Health worth $6,521,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of ASTH. Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Astrana Health by 200.0% in the 4th quarter. Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. now owns 63,000 shares of the company's stock worth $1,563,000 after acquiring an additional 42,000 shares in the last quarter. UBS Group AG raised its holdings in shares of Astrana Health by 48.4% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 176,100 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,369,000 after purchasing an additional 57,432 shares during the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Astrana Health by 19.8% during the fourth quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 432,726 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,736,000 after purchasing an additional 71,462 shares in the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new position in shares of Astrana Health during the first quarter valued at about $468,000. Finally, 1492 Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Astrana Health during the fourth quarter worth about $4,162,000. 52.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ASTH has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays raised shares of Astrana Health from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $37.00 to $50.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of Astrana Health from $38.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Astrana Health from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Needham & Company LLC upped their target price on Astrana Health from $30.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $45.00 price target on Astrana Health in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $47.86.

Astrana Health Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ASTH opened at $38.19 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a current ratio of 1.35. The stock has a market cap of $2.13 billion, a PE ratio of 62.61 and a beta of 0.89. Astrana Health, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $18.08 and a fifty-two week high of $51.60. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $41.76 and a 200-day moving average of $31.97.

Astrana Health (NASDAQ:ASTH - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.45. The business had revenue of $965.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $949.21 million. Astrana Health had a net margin of 0.86% and a return on equity of 9.22%. Astrana Health's revenue was up 55.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.42 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Astrana Health, Inc. will post 1.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Astrana Health Profile

Astrana Health, Inc, Inc, a physician-centric technology-powered healthcare management company, provides medical care services in the United States. It operates through three segments: Care Partners, Care Delivery, and Care Enablement. The company is leveraging its proprietary population health management and healthcare delivery platform, operates an integrated, value-based healthcare model which empowers the providers in its network to deliver care to its patients. It offers care coordination services to patients, families, primary care physicians, specialists, acute care hospitals, alternative sites of inpatient care, physician groups, and health plans.

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