NovoCure (NASDAQ:NVCR) Receives "Sell (E+)" Rating from Weiss Ratings

Key Points

• Weiss Ratings has reiterated a "sell (E+)" rating for NovoCure's stock, while various analysts have different ratings ranging from "buy" to "equal weight" with target prices between $14.50 and $34.00.
• NovoCure reported a quarterly earnings per share of ($0.36), slightly surpassing the analysts' expectations, and its revenue increased by 5.6% year-over-year to $158.80 million.
• CEO Ashley Cordova and CFO Christoph Brackmann have recently purchased shares in the company, indicating insider optimism as they expanded their positions by 22.91% and 16.51% respectively.

NovoCure (NASDAQ:NVCR - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "sell (e+)" rating reiterated by equities researchers at Weiss Ratings in a note issued to investors on Saturday,Weiss Ratings reports.

Several other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on NVCR. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $34.00 price objective on shares of NovoCure in a report on Friday, June 27th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH began coverage on NovoCure in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. They set a "buy" rating and a $30.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and set a $14.50 price objective (down from $40.00) on shares of NovoCure in a report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Wedbush reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $18.00 price objective on shares of NovoCure in a report on Tuesday, September 30th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, NovoCure has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $27.50.

NovoCure Stock Down 1.2%

NovoCure stock opened at $13.75 on Friday. NovoCure has a twelve month low of $10.87 and a twelve month high of $34.13. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $12.99 and a two-hundred day moving average of $15.17. The company has a current ratio of 1.45, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.81 and a beta of 0.75.

NovoCure (NASDAQ:NVCR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The medical equipment provider reported ($0.36) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.39) by $0.03. The company had revenue of $158.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $153.87 million. NovoCure had a negative return on equity of 47.74% and a negative net margin of 27.13%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.31) EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that NovoCure will post -1.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at NovoCure

In related news, CEO Ashley Cordova purchased 81,550 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 5th. The stock was bought at an average price of $12.22 per share, with a total value of $996,541.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 437,569 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,347,093.18. This represents a 22.91% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Christoph Brackmann purchased 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $11.59 per share, with a total value of $231,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 141,150 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,635,928.50. This represents a 16.51% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 5.52% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On NovoCure

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in NVCR. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of NovoCure in the third quarter valued at $41,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of NovoCure by 17.1% in the second quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 4,307 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $77,000 after purchasing an additional 629 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in NovoCure during the first quarter valued at about $87,000. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in NovoCure during the second quarter valued at about $88,000. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its position in NovoCure by 463.8% during the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 6,529 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $116,000 after acquiring an additional 5,371 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.61% of the company's stock.

About NovoCure

NovoCure Limited, an oncology company, engages in the development, manufacture, and commercialization of tumor treating fields (TTFields) devices for the treatment of solid tumor cancers in the United States, Germany, Japan, Greater China, and internationally. The company's TTFields devices include Optune Gio and Optune Lua.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.