Align Technology, Inc. $ALGN Shares Purchased by Riverbridge Partners LLC

Riverbridge Partners LLC raised its stake in Align Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALGN) by 29.9% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 53,950 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 12,413 shares during the quarter. Riverbridge Partners LLC’s holdings in Align Technology were worth $7,543,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ALGN. Entrust Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of Align Technology by 272.9% during the third quarter. Entrust Financial LLC now owns 220 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management bought a new stake in Align Technology during the first quarter worth $34,000. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Align Technology in the 2nd quarter valued at $36,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Align Technology in the 2nd quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. raised its position in Align Technology by 37.2% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 247 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. 88.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on ALGN. Robert W. Baird cut Align Technology from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $218.00 to $162.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. Leerink Partners reduced their target price on shares of Align Technology from $235.00 to $215.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 14th. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Align Technology from $235.00 to $205.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 21st. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Align Technology from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, October 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Align Technology from $188.00 to $175.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Align Technology has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $193.08.

Align Technology Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ALGN opened at $174.26 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $12.28 billion, a PE ratio of 25.37, a PEG ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 1.74. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $151.00 and its 200-day moving average price is $168.55. Align Technology, Inc. has a twelve month low of $130.23 and a twelve month high of $200.43.

Align Technology (NASDAQ:ALGN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.77 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1 billion. Align Technology had a return on equity of 15.96% and a net margin of 11.83%. Align Technology’s revenue was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.61 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Align Technology, Inc. will post 9.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Align Technology

Align Technology, Inc. develops, manufactures and markets digital orthodontic and restorative dentistry products. Its best-known offering is the Invisalign system, which uses a series of custom-made clear aligners to straighten teeth. The company also sells Vivera retainers and iTero intraoral scanners, which support digital dental imaging and treatment planning. Founded in 1997, Align helped popularize clear-aligner orthodontic treatment as an alternative to traditional braces. Its digital dentistry portfolio also includes exocad software, used by dental professionals and laboratories to design dental restorations.