Alignment Healthcare, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALHC) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Alignment Healthcare, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALHC - Get Free Report) saw a large increase in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 4,690,000 shares, an increase of 19.0% from the March 31st total of 3,940,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 901,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 5.2 days. Approximately 5.2% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Alignment Healthcare Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of Alignment Healthcare stock traded up $0.05 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $5.21. 497,553 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 700,151. The company has a market cap of $984.59 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.59 and a beta of 1.30. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $5.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $6.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.84 and a current ratio of 1.84. Alignment Healthcare has a 52 week low of $4.46 and a 52 week high of $9.20.

Alignment Healthcare (NASDAQ:ALHC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The company reported ($0.25) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.22) by ($0.03). Alignment Healthcare had a negative net margin of 8.12% and a negative return on equity of 75.64%. The firm had revenue of $465.39 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $444.56 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.31) earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 28.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Alignment Healthcare will post -0.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Alignment Healthcare from $9.00 to $8.50 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Alignment Healthcare from $11.00 to $9.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Stephens raised their price target on Alignment Healthcare from $10.00 to $10.50 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 9th. William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Alignment Healthcare in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Barclays started coverage on shares of Alignment Healthcare in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. They issued an "underweight" rating and a $4.50 price objective on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Alignment Healthcare currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $9.18.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Dawn Christine Maroney sold 15,861 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.05, for a total transaction of $80,098.05. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,999,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,097,475. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Robert Thomas Freeman sold 28,522 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.05, for a total transaction of $144,036.10. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 869,706 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,392,015.30. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Dawn Christine Maroney sold 15,861 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.05, for a total value of $80,098.05. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,999,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,097,475. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 90,213 shares of company stock valued at $460,587. Corporate insiders own 6.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Alignment Healthcare

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its holdings in Alignment Healthcare by 75.5% during the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 26,427 shares of the company's stock valued at $183,000 after purchasing an additional 11,370 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its position in shares of Alignment Healthcare by 38.1% in the third quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 31,069 shares of the company's stock worth $218,000 after purchasing an additional 8,577 shares in the last quarter. Strs Ohio raised its position in Alignment Healthcare by 24.2% during the third quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 85,700 shares of the company's stock worth $594,000 after acquiring an additional 16,700 shares in the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc raised its position in Alignment Healthcare by 35.5% during the third quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 348,450 shares of the company's stock worth $2,418,000 after acquiring an additional 91,386 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Alignment Healthcare by 16.8% in the third quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 345,798 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,400,000 after purchasing an additional 49,716 shares during the period. 86.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alignment Healthcare Company Profile

Alignment Healthcare, Inc, a tech-enabled Medicare advantage company, operates consumer-centric health care platform for seniors in the United States. It provides customized health care designed to meet the needs of a diverse array of seniors through its Medicare advantage plans. The company was founded in 2013 and is based in Orange, California.