QuidelOrtho (NASDAQ:QDEL) Stock Falls 9.2% - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• QuidelOrtho shares fell 9.2% in Friday’s midday trading, to about $11.66, on volume 73% below the average.
• Analysts’ average rating is “Reduce,” with a $13.62 average price target; four analysts rate the stock Hold and two rate it Sell.
• Latest-quarter EPS of $0.31 beat estimates of $0.18, but revenue missed expectations and fell 11.6% year over year to $618.9 million.

QuidelOrtho Corporation (NASDAQ:QDEL - Get Free Report)'s share price dropped 9.2% during mid-day trading on Friday. The company traded as low as $11.62 and last traded at $11.6590. 488,315 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 73% from the average session volume of 1,794,815 shares. The stock had previously closed at $12.84.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on QDEL shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (e+)" rating on shares of QuidelOrtho in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of QuidelOrtho from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, October 9th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $13.62.

QuidelOrtho Trading Down 12.2%

The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $12.68 and a 200-day simple moving average of $16.07. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. The stock has a market cap of $772.84 million, a PE ratio of -2.08 and a beta of 0.77.

QuidelOrtho (NASDAQ:QDEL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The company reported $0.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.13. QuidelOrtho had a positive return on equity of 3.22% and a negative net margin of 14.24%. The company had revenue of $618.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $627.83 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.80 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that QuidelOrtho Corporation will post 0.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On QuidelOrtho

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of QDEL. Gagnon Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of QuidelOrtho by 79.3% in the 3rd quarter. Gagnon Advisors LLC now owns 432,186 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,555,000 after acquiring an additional 191,089 shares in the last quarter. Gagnon Securities LLC boosted its position in shares of QuidelOrtho by 26.0% during the 3rd quarter. Gagnon Securities LLC now owns 1,298,562 shares of the company's stock valued at $13,687,000 after acquiring an additional 268,191 shares during the last quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System purchased a new position in shares of QuidelOrtho during the third quarter worth about $160,000. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund grew its holdings in shares of QuidelOrtho by 15.4% during the third quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 40,140 shares of the company's stock worth $423,000 after purchasing an additional 5,345 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Management Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of QuidelOrtho by 10.6% during the third quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 2,290,299 shares of the company's stock worth $24,140,000 after purchasing an additional 219,908 shares in the last quarter. 99.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

QuidelOrtho Company Profile

QuidelOrtho Corporation NASDAQ: QDEL is a global in vitro diagnostics company formed through the combination of Quidel Corporation and Ortho Clinical Diagnostics, a transaction completed in 2022. The company develops, manufactures and markets diagnostic technologies used to detect disease, guide treatment decisions and support blood-transfusion safety.

Its portfolio includes rapid immunoassays, molecular testing systems, clinical chemistry and immunohematology products, as well as laboratory automation solutions.

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