Vestcor Inc Takes $2.33 Million Position in STAAR Surgical Company $STAA

Key Points

• Vestcor Inc opened a new position of 86,558 shares in STAAR Surgical in Q3, valued at approximately $2.33 million, representing about 0.17% ownership at quarter-end.
• Major shareholder Broadwood Partners bought 336,946 shares on Jan. 6 for ~$7.28 million and now holds ~15.36 million shares, and insiders purchased a total of 434,138 shares in the past 90 days.
• STAAR missed its recent quarter with EPS of ($0.37) vs. $0.14 expected and revenue $57.8M vs. $75.5M expected; analysts have a consensus rating of "Reduce" with an average target of $18.94 while the stock trades near $17.66.

Vestcor Inc bought a new stake in STAAR Surgical Company (NASDAQ:STAA - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 86,558 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock, valued at approximately $2,326,000. Vestcor Inc owned 0.17% of STAAR Surgical at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Broadwood Capital Inc. increased its stake in STAAR Surgical by 8.5% during the 2nd quarter. Broadwood Capital Inc. now owns 13,519,491 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $226,857,000 after buying an additional 1,064,227 shares during the period. Soleus Capital Management L.P. lifted its holdings in STAAR Surgical by 16.5% in the 2nd quarter. Soleus Capital Management L.P. now owns 2,984,733 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $50,084,000 after buying an additional 421,840 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in STAAR Surgical by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,192,821 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $20,018,000 after buying an additional 3,335 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position in STAAR Surgical by 17.1% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,153,895 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $19,362,000 after buying an additional 168,285 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alpine Associates Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of STAAR Surgical during the third quarter valued at about $24,535,000. 96.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at STAAR Surgical

In other news, major shareholder Broadwood Partners, L.P. bought 336,946 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of $21.62 per share, for a total transaction of $7,284,772.52. Following the transaction, the insider owned 15,356,437 shares in the company, valued at $332,006,167.94. The trade was a 2.24% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In the last ninety days, insiders purchased 434,138 shares of company stock valued at $9,424,176. 0.59% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on STAAR Surgical in a research report on Friday, January 16th. They set an "underweight" rating and a $13.00 target price on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on STAAR Surgical from $28.00 to $21.50 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their price objective on STAAR Surgical from $30.75 to $22.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Wedbush initiated coverage on STAAR Surgical in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $26.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on STAAR Surgical from $19.00 to $18.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $18.94.

STAAR Surgical Stock Performance

Shares of STAAR Surgical stock opened at $17.66 on Thursday. STAAR Surgical Company has a 1 year low of $14.69 and a 1 year high of $30.81. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $19.35 and its 200-day simple moving average is $23.81. The firm has a market cap of $874.40 million, a PE ratio of -10.83 and a beta of 1.05.

STAAR Surgical (NASDAQ:STAA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 3rd. The medical instruments supplier reported ($0.37) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.14 by ($0.51). STAAR Surgical had a negative return on equity of 10.03% and a negative net margin of 33.60%.The firm had revenue of $57.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $75.54 million. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 18.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that STAAR Surgical Company will post -1.14 earnings per share for the current year.

STAAR Surgical Company Profile

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. It markets its products to health care providers, including ophthalmic surgeons, vision and surgical centers, hospitals, government facilities, and distributors, as well as products are primarily used by ophthalmologists.

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