Artivion (NYSE:AORT) Shares Down 6.6% – What’s Next?

Artivion, Inc. (NYSE:AORT) shares dropped 6.6% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $33.85 and last traded at $34.1850. Approximately 397,565 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 2% from the average daily volume of 403,735 shares. The stock had previously closed at $36.62.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on AORT. Wall Street Zen lowered Artivion from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 14th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $55.00 target price on shares of Artivion in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their price target on shares of Artivion from $51.00 to $48.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $58.00 price target on shares of Artivion in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Artivion from a “sell (d)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Artivion has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $50.47.

Artivion Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 3.53, a quick ratio of 2.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $38.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $42.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.64 billion, a PE ratio of 169.88 and a beta of 1.60.

Artivion (NYSE:AORT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The company reported $0.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $118.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $116.42 million. Artivion had a return on equity of 7.43% and a net margin of 2.21%.The business’s revenue was up 19.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Artivion, Inc. will post 0.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Amy Horton sold 901 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.78, for a total value of $34,039.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 139,088 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,254,744.64. The trade was a 0.64% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Lance A. Berry sold 6,316 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.78, for a total transaction of $238,618.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 210,827 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,965,044.06. This trade represents a 2.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders sold 133,043 shares of company stock valued at $4,977,158. Insiders own 8.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Artivion

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Artivion by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,170,089 shares of the company’s stock valued at $144,588,000 after buying an additional 141,030 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in Artivion by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 2,256,742 shares of the company’s stock worth $102,930,000 after acquiring an additional 18,248 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Artivion by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,584,920 shares of the company’s stock valued at $72,288,000 after acquiring an additional 44,641 shares during the last quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC raised its holdings in Artivion by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC now owns 1,372,572 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,603,000 after acquiring an additional 55,322 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Artivion by 211.9% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,101,239 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,228,000 after purchasing an additional 748,119 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.37% of the company’s stock.

About Artivion

Artivion, Inc (NYSE: AORT) is a global medical technology company that develops, manufactures and markets implantable tissue products and surgical devices for cardiac and vascular surgery. The company’s portfolio includes biologic implants derived from human and animal tissue, such as allografts and xenografts, as well as synthetic scaffolds and surgical adhesives. These products are designed to repair, reinforce or replace damaged cardiovascular and thoracic tissues during procedures such as aortic repair, heart valve surgery and vascular reconstruction.

Originally founded in 1984 under the name CryoLife, the company rebranded as Artivion in early 2022 to reflect its broader mission in cardiovascular innovation.