Montrose Environmental Group (NYSE:ONT) Given New $28.00 Price Target at Needham & Company LLC

Key Points

• Needham & Company LLC cut Montrose Environmental Group’s price target to $28 from $35, while keeping a buy rating. The new target still implies meaningful upside from the prior close.
• The stock was down 8.5% on Friday to $15.96, even after the company reported better-than-expected quarterly results with EPS of $0.35 versus $0.24 expected and revenue of $193.27 million versus $186.24 million expected.
• Analyst sentiment has become more cautious overall, with the stock’s consensus rating at Hold and an average price target of $32.33. Insiders also sold shares in recent months, including notable sales by the general counsel and another executive.

Montrose Environmental Group (NYSE:ONT - Get Free Report) had its target price decreased by equities researchers at Needham & Company LLC from $35.00 to $28.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "buy" rating on the stock. Needham & Company LLC's price objective would suggest a potential upside of 75.44% from the company's previous close.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on ONT. Zacks Research cut Montrose Environmental Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Monday. Wall Street Zen cut Montrose Environmental Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, January 17th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Montrose Environmental Group presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $32.33.

Montrose Environmental Group Trading Down 8.5%

Montrose Environmental Group stock traded down $1.49 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $15.96. The company had a trading volume of 1,120,822 shares, compared to its average volume of 369,592. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.43. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $23.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $24.23. The firm has a market cap of $577.27 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 319.26, a P/E/G ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.83. Montrose Environmental Group has a 12-month low of $15.40 and a 12-month high of $32.00.

Montrose Environmental Group (NYSE:ONT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $193.27 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $186.24 million. Montrose Environmental Group had a return on equity of 5.55% and a net margin of 0.71%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.90) EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Montrose Environmental Group will post 0.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, General Counsel Nasym Afsari sold 43,348 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.37, for a total transaction of $1,229,782.76. Following the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 204,878 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,812,388.86. The trade was a 17.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jose Revuelta sold 7,858 shares of Montrose Environmental Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.00, for a total value of $212,166.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 269,282 shares in the company, valued at $7,270,614. This represents a 2.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 107,527 shares of company stock valued at $2,908,583 over the last three months. 10.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Montrose Environmental Group

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new stake in shares of Montrose Environmental Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its position in shares of Montrose Environmental Group by 533.3% during the second quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 1,900 shares of the company's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 1,600 shares in the last quarter. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Montrose Environmental Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $75,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its position in shares of Montrose Environmental Group by 95.6% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,085 shares of the company's stock valued at $68,000 after purchasing an additional 1,508 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Montrose Environmental Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $84,000. 87.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Montrose Environmental Group Company Profile

Montrose Environmental Group NYSE: MEG is a global provider of environmental technical and monitoring services, delivering solutions for site assessment, remediation, compliance and long-term environmental stewardship. The company serves a broad range of industries, including energy, manufacturing, chemicals, mining and government agencies, supporting clients with risk management strategies, regulatory permitting and environmental permitting.

Montrose's core offerings encompass environmental consulting, engineering design, field sampling and laboratory analysis, plus innovative digital monitoring platforms.

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