Empowered Funds LLC Invests $1.16 Million in Novanta Inc. $NOVT

Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new position in shares of Novanta Inc. (NASDAQ:NOVT) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 7,173 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,164,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of NOVT. Bamco Inc. NY purchased a new position in shares of Novanta in the 2nd quarter worth $137,984,000. William Blair Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Novanta in the 2nd quarter valued at $124,254,000. GW&K Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Novanta by 187.3% during the 4th quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 736,954 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $87,691,000 after purchasing an additional 480,413 shares during the period. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Novanta in the second quarter worth about $71,407,000. Finally, Sculptor Capital LP acquired a new stake in shares of Novanta in the fourth quarter valued at about $51,265,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.35% of the company’s stock.

Novanta Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of NASDAQ:NOVT opened at $148.36 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $5.61 billion, a PE ratio of 95.10 and a beta of 1.67. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $151.30 and a 200 day simple moving average of $143.43. The company has a current ratio of 4.57, a quick ratio of 3.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. Novanta Inc. has a 12-month low of $98.27 and a 12-month high of $176.38.

Novanta (NASDAQ:NOVT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The technology company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.06. Novanta had a net margin of 6.00% and a return on equity of 10.83%. The firm had revenue of $265.81 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $262.30 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.76 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Novanta has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.680-3.740 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.950-1.000 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Novanta Inc. will post 3.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Novanta news, CEO Matthijs Glastra sold 6,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.13, for a total transaction of $1,047,345.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 29,761 shares in the company, valued at $4,795,389.93. This represents a 17.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Robert W. Baird set a $194.00 target price on Novanta in a report on Friday, August 7th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Novanta from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, August 9th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Novanta in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Novanta from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $194.00.

Novanta 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.