Vestcor Inc Makes New Investment in Novanta Inc. (NASDAQ:NOVT)

Key Points

• Vestcor Inc has invested approximately $291,000 in Novanta Inc., acquiring 2,272 shares during the first quarter.
• Institutional investors now own 98.35% of Novanta's stock, with several major firms like T. Rowe Price and Millennium Management significantly increasing their stakes.
• Novanta has recently been upgraded from a "hold" to a "buy" rating by Wall Street Zen, reflecting positive market sentiment.

Vestcor Inc acquired a new stake in Novanta Inc. (NASDAQ:NOVT - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 2,272 shares of the technology company's stock, valued at approximately $291,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its stake in Novanta by 1,426.7% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 229 shares of the technology company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 214 shares during the period. Johnson Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Novanta by 482.1% during the fourth quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 326 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Novanta by 146.0% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 401 shares of the technology company's stock worth $51,000 after buying an additional 238 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC increased its holdings in Novanta by 329.8% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 404 shares of the technology company's stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 310 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC boosted its position in Novanta by 80.0% in the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 414 shares of the technology company's stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.35% of the company's stock.

Novanta Price Performance

NOVT traded up $1.44 on Friday, hitting $115.17. 209,120 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 281,432. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $125.61 and its 200-day simple moving average is $129.44. The firm has a market cap of $4.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 67.74 and a beta of 1.48. Novanta Inc. has a one year low of $98.76 and a one year high of $186.75. The company has a current ratio of 2.54, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57.

Novanta (NASDAQ:NOVT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The technology company reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $241.05 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $237.97 million. Novanta had a return on equity of 14.70% and a net margin of 6.41%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.73 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Novanta Inc. will post 3.03 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Wall Street Zen raised Novanta from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Sunday, August 3rd.

Novanta Company Profile

Novanta, Inc engages in the provision of core technology solutions to healthcare and advanced industrial original equipment manufacturers. It operates through the following segments: Photonics, Vision, and Precision Motion. The Photonics segment designs, manufactures, and markets photonics-based solutions, including laser scanning and laser beam delivery, CO2 laser, continuous wave and ultrafast laser, and optical light engine products.