Novanta (NASDAQ:NOVT) Stock Price Crosses Above 50-Day Moving Average - Should You Sell?

Novanta Inc. (NASDAQ:NOVT - Get Free Report)'s share price crossed above its 50 day moving average during trading on Wednesday . The stock has a 50 day moving average of $126.50 and traded as high as $129.29. Novanta shares last traded at $120.89, with a volume of 417,752 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on NOVT shares. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Novanta from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $150.00 to $144.00 in a report on Monday, March 30th. Zacks Research raised shares of Novanta from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Novanta in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Novanta from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, April 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $144.00.

Novanta Trading Down 6.3%

The company has a market cap of $4.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 82.80 and a beta of 1.64. The company has a current ratio of 3.69, a quick ratio of 2.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $126.50 and its 200 day moving average price is $124.10.

Novanta (NASDAQ:NOVT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 23rd. The technology company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $258.35 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $260.72 million. Novanta had a net margin of 5.49% and a return on equity of 13.12%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.76 EPS. Novanta has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.500-3.650 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.750-0.800 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Novanta Inc. will post 3.54 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Novanta

In related news, CFO Robert Buckley sold 9,957 shares of Novanta stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.77, for a total value of $1,162,678.89. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 96,616 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,281,850.32. This trade represents a 9.34% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Matthijs Glastra sold 6,500 shares of Novanta stock in a transaction on Friday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.05, for a total transaction of $845,325.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 56,761 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,381,768.05. The trade was a 10.27% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 25,380 shares of company stock valued at $3,296,276. Insiders own 1.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Novanta

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in Novanta by 75.9% in the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,399,462 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $155,536,000 after purchasing an additional 604,055 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Novanta by 15.4% in the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 81,691 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $8,181,000 after purchasing an additional 10,896 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its position in Novanta by 24.8% in the 3rd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 222,391 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $22,272,000 after purchasing an additional 44,252 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Novanta by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 753,111 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $75,424,000 after purchasing an additional 30,674 shares during the period. Finally, Mawer Investment Management Ltd. grew its position in Novanta by 1,114.5% in the 3rd quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. now owns 391,148 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $39,173,000 after purchasing an additional 358,941 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.35% of the company's stock.

Novanta Company Profile

Novanta, Inc NASDAQ: NOVT is a global technology company that designs and manufactures precision components, subsystems and software used in advanced photonics and motion control applications. The company serves customers in the medical device and advanced industrial markets, supplying critical technologies for diagnostics and therapeutic systems, semiconductor and electronics manufacturing, and scientific instrumentation. Novanta's product portfolio includes laser control modules, optics, beam delivery systems, high-precision motors, actuators, stages, and fluidics solutions designed to meet stringent accuracy and reliability requirements.

Novanta's Photonics segment delivers laser and energy delivery components that enable minimally invasive surgical procedures and diagnostic imaging.

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