Certara (NASDAQ:CERT) Raised to Overweight at KeyCorp

Certara (NASDAQ:CERT - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at KeyCorp from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm presently has a $23.00 price target on the stock. KeyCorp's price objective points to a potential upside of 24.59% from the company's previous close.

Several other equities analysts also recently weighed in on CERT. Leerink Partnrs reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Certara in a research report on Monday, February 26th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Certara from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st. JMP Securities started coverage on Certara in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. They issued a "market perform" rating for the company. Barclays lifted their target price on Certara from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, SVB Leerink started coverage on Certara in a research report on Monday, February 26th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $19.00 target price for the company. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Certara currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $20.06.

Certara Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:CERT traded down $0.05 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $18.46. 565,649 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 548,578. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $17.72 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $16.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 2.62 and a quick ratio of 2.62. The stock has a market cap of $2.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -53.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.63. Certara has a fifty-two week low of $11.81 and a fifty-two week high of $24.96.

Certara (NASDAQ:CERT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 29th. The company reported $0.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.09 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $88.01 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $86.80 million. Certara had a positive return on equity of 4.33% and a negative net margin of 15.62%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Certara will post 0.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Patrick F. Smith sold 14,427 shares of Certara stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.85, for a total value of $243,094.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 50,091 shares in the company, valued at approximately $844,033.35. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, SVP Richard M. Traynor sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.00, for a total transaction of $54,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 173,524 shares in the company, valued at $3,123,432. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Patrick F. Smith sold 14,427 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.85, for a total value of $243,094.95. Following the sale, the insider now owns 50,091 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $844,033.35. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 23,427 shares of company stock worth $405,095. 2.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Certara

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CERT. Raymond James & Associates lifted its stake in Certara by 83.4% during the first quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 37,080 shares of the company's stock worth $796,000 after purchasing an additional 16,861 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in Certara by 1.1% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 384,913 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,268,000 after buying an additional 4,107 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Certara by 71.6% in the first quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 19,847 shares of the company's stock valued at $440,000 after buying an additional 8,282 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in Certara by 18.3% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 5,841 shares of the company's stock valued at $126,000 after buying an additional 905 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Certara in the first quarter valued at approximately $111,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.96% of the company's stock.

Certara Company Profile

Certara, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides software products and technology-enabled services to customers for biosimulation in drug discovery, preclinical and clinical research, regulatory submissions, and market access in the United States and internationally. It offers solutions for model-informed drug development, as well as biosimulation solution used to predict both pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics.