Vanguard Group Inc. Grows Stock Position in Artivion, Inc. $AORT

Key Points

• Vanguard Group increased its stake in Artivion by 4.7% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to 3.17 million shares valued at about $144.6 million. Vanguard now owns roughly 6.69% of the company.
• Artivion’s stock fell 6.4% to $23.77, despite the company recently reporting better-than-expected earnings of $0.17 per share on revenue of $118.3 million, with sales up 19.2% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed but generally positive: several firms adjusted ratings and price targets, and the stock currently carries a Moderate Buy consensus with an average target price of $47.83.

Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Artivion, Inc. (NYSE:AORT - Free Report) by 4.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,170,089 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 141,030 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 6.69% of Artivion worth $144,588,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AORT. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd increased its position in shares of Artivion by 402.3% during the 3rd quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 648 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 519 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Artivion during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. USA Financial Formulas increased its position in shares of Artivion by 163.5% during the 4th quarter. USA Financial Formulas now owns 1,133 shares of the company's stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 703 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Artivion by 47.7% during the 2nd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,667 shares of the company's stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 538 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV bought a new position in shares of Artivion during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.37% of the company's stock.

Artivion Trading Down 6.4%

Artivion stock opened at $23.77 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $1.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 99.06 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 3.86 and a quick ratio of 2.80. Artivion, Inc. has a 1 year low of $19.16 and a 1 year high of $48.25. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $36.01 and its 200-day moving average price is $40.94.

Artivion (NYSE:AORT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The company reported $0.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $118.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $116.42 million. Artivion had a net margin of 2.55% and a return on equity of 7.15%. The company's revenue was up 19.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Artivion, Inc. will post 0.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on AORT. Wall Street Zen downgraded Artivion from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, April 25th. Needham & Company LLC cut their price objective on Artivion from $58.00 to $44.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Weiss Ratings upgraded Artivion from a "sell (d)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $55.00 price objective on Artivion in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded Artivion from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $42.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Artivion presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $47.83.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider John E. Davis sold 4,573 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.78, for a total transaction of $172,767.94. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 230,794 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,719,397.32. This represents a 1.94% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Amy Horton sold 901 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.78, for a total value of $34,039.78. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 139,088 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,254,744.64. This represents a 0.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 133,043 shares of company stock valued at $4,977,158. Company insiders own 6.30% of the company's stock.

Artivion Company Profile

Artivion, Inc NYSE: AORT is a global medical technology company that develops, manufactures and markets implantable tissue products and surgical devices for cardiac and vascular surgery. The company’s portfolio includes biologic implants derived from human and animal tissue, such as allografts and xenografts, as well as synthetic scaffolds and surgical adhesives. These products are designed to repair, reinforce or replace damaged cardiovascular and thoracic tissues during procedures such as aortic repair, heart valve surgery and vascular reconstruction.

Originally founded in 1984 under the name CryoLife, the company rebranded as Artivion in early 2022 to reflect its broader mission in cardiovascular innovation.

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