Guardant Health's (GH) "Buy" Rating Reiterated at BTIG Research

Key Points

• Guardant Health's stock received a "buy" rating from BTIG Research, with a target price of $70.00, indicating a potential upside of 18.34% from its last close.
• The company reported quarterly earnings that exceeded expectations, with a revenue increase of 31.0% year-over-year, leading to a $0.08 positive surprise in EPS compared to analysts' predictions.
• Insider trading activity revealed significant sales, with CEO Amirali Talasaz selling 100,000 shares for over $5 million, while a director reduced their ownership by nearly 72% through a recent sale.

BTIG Research reaffirmed their buy rating on shares of Guardant Health (NASDAQ:GH - Free Report) in a research report released on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $70.00 price objective on the stock.

Several other research firms have also recently commented on GH. Raymond James Financial upped their price target on Guardant Health from $59.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Scotiabank upped their price objective on Guardant Health from $57.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Mizuho upped their price objective on Guardant Health from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, June 13th. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on Guardant Health in a report on Monday. They set an "overweight" rating and a $72.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Evercore ISI raised Guardant Health to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and eighteen have issued a Buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $59.00.

Guardant Health Price Performance

Shares of Guardant Health stock traded up $0.63 on Monday, reaching $59.78. 2,261,841 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,211,464. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $54.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $48.41. The company has a market cap of $7.46 billion, a P/E ratio of -17.84 and a beta of 1.45. Guardant Health has a 1-year low of $20.14 and a 1-year high of $68.00.

Guardant Health (NASDAQ:GH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported ($0.44) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.52) by $0.08. The business had revenue of $232.09 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $211.19 million. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.84) earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 31.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Guardant Health has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Guardant Health will post -2.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Medina Manuel Hidalgo sold 2,165 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.16, for a total transaction of $117,256.40. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 851 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,090.16. This represents a 71.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Helmy Eltoukhy sold 300,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.45, for a total value of $17,835,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,123,499 shares in the company, valued at approximately $126,242,015.55. This trade represents a 12.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 402,691 shares of company stock worth $23,069,965. 6.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Guardant Health

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of GH. Signaturefd LLC raised its holdings in shares of Guardant Health by 50.5% during the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 635 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 213 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc raised its holdings in shares of Guardant Health by 120.1% during the 2nd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 612 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 334 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in shares of Guardant Health by 358.4% during the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 706 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 552 shares during the period. SVB Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Guardant Health during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $54,000. Finally, FNY Investment Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Guardant Health during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $62,000. 92.60% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Guardant Health Company Profile

Guardant Health, Inc, a precision oncology company, provides blood and tissue tests, data sets, and analytics in the United States and internationally. The company provides Guardant360; Guardant360 LDT; Guardant360 CDx Test; Guardant360 Response Test; Guardant360 TissueNext Test; GuardantINFINITY Test; GuardantConnect, an integrated software-based solution designed for clinical and biopharmaceutical customers to connect patients tested with assays with actionable alterations with potentially relevant clinical studies; GuardantOMNI Test for advanced stage cancer; and GuardantINFORM, an in-silico research platform for tumor evolution and treatment resistance across various biomarker-driven cancers.