Guardian Pharmacy Services (NYSE:GRDN) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

Guardian Pharmacy Services (NYSE:GRDN - Get Free Report) was downgraded by Wall Street Zen from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on GRDN. Oppenheimer increased their target price on shares of Guardian Pharmacy Services from $38.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Guardian Pharmacy Services from $38.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Guardian Pharmacy Services in a research note on Monday, April 27th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $42.00 target price on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Guardian Pharmacy Services in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Guardian Pharmacy Services in a research note on Monday, March 30th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $44.00 target price on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $41.33.

Guardian Pharmacy Services Price Performance

NYSE GRDN opened at $36.01 on Friday. Guardian Pharmacy Services has a 1 year low of $19.17 and a 1 year high of $41.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.79 billion, a PE ratio of 43.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.09. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $36.07 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $32.28.

Guardian Pharmacy Services (NYSE:GRDN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.05. Guardian Pharmacy Services had a net margin of 3.64% and a return on equity of 30.72%. The business had revenue of $336.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $329.89 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.22 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Guardian Pharmacy Services will post 1.17 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Kendall Forbes sold 346,672 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.68, for a total value of $10,289,224.96. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 453,256 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,452,638.08. This trade represents a 43.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Fred Burke sold 671,432 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.68, for a total transaction of $19,928,101.76. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 840,413 shares in the company, valued at $24,943,457.84. This represents a 44.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 9,726,405 shares of company stock valued at $288,679,700 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 32.96% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Guardian Pharmacy Services

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of GRDN. State of Alaska Department of Revenue purchased a new position in shares of Guardian Pharmacy Services during the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Guardian Pharmacy Services by 26.5% during the 3rd quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 1,647 shares of the company's stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 345 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Guardian Pharmacy Services during the 2nd quarter valued at about $43,000. State of Wyoming purchased a new position in shares of Guardian Pharmacy Services during the 2nd quarter valued at about $58,000. Finally, Strs Ohio purchased a new position in shares of Guardian Pharmacy Services during the 4th quarter valued at about $75,000.

About Guardian Pharmacy Services

Guardian Pharmacy Services, Inc, a pharmacy service company, provides a suite of technology-enabled services designed to help residents of long-term health care facilities (LTCFs) in the United States. Its individualized clinical, drug dispensing, and administration capabilities are used to serve the needs of residents in lower acuity LTCFs, such as assisted living facilities and behavioral health facilities and group homes. The company's Guardian Compass includes dashboards created using data from its data warehouse to help its local pharmacies plan, track, and optimize their business operations; and GuardianShield Programs for LTCFs.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.