Exact Sciences Co. (NASDAQ:EXAS) Shares Acquired by Bellevue Group AG

Bellevue Group AG increased its position in Exact Sciences Co. (NASDAQ:EXAS) by 8.7% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,138,526 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 90,740 shares during the quarter. Exact Sciences accounts for 1.2% of Bellevue Group AG’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Bellevue Group AG’s holdings in Exact Sciences were worth $78,627,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of EXAS. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. lifted its holdings in Exact Sciences by 65.6% during the 1st quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 452 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. Able Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Exact Sciences in the fourth quarter worth $45,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC bought a new stake in Exact Sciences during the first quarter valued at $55,000. National Bank of Canada FI raised its holdings in shares of Exact Sciences by 30.9% during the fourth quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 848 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $63,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Exact Sciences in the 4th quarter worth about $66,000. 88.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Exact Sciences Price Performance

Exact Sciences stock traded down $3.06 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $45.30. 3,751,212 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,264,705. Exact Sciences Co. has a 1-year low of $40.62 and a 1-year high of $99.56. The firm has a market cap of $8.36 billion, a P/E ratio of -34.32 and a beta of 1.22. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $45.55 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $56.60. The company has a quick ratio of 1.45, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66.

Exact Sciences (NASDAQ:EXAS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 8th. The medical research company reported ($0.50) EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.50). The business had revenue of $637.52 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $624.95 million. Exact Sciences had a negative net margin of 9.48% and a negative return on equity of 7.12%. As a group, analysts forecast that Exact Sciences Co. will post -1.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Kevin T. Conroy sold 1,155 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.15, for a total value of $69,473.25. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,156,191 shares in the company, valued at $69,544,888.65. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,498 shares of company stock worth $90,105. 1.36% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on EXAS. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Exact Sciences from $100.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 9th. Scotiabank began coverage on Exact Sciences in a report on Thursday, June 27th. They issued a “sector outperform” rating and a $70.00 price target on the stock. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on Exact Sciences from $80.00 to $72.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on Exact Sciences from $88.00 to $75.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Exact Sciences in a report on Monday, June 3rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $75.00 price target for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $85.80.

Exact Sciences Company Profile

Exact Sciences Corporation provides cancer screening and diagnostic test products in the United States and internationally. The company offers Cologuard, a non-invasive stool-based DNA screening test to detect DNA and hemoglobin biomarkers associated with colorectal cancer and pre-cancer. It also provides Oncotype DX Breast Recurrence Score Test; Oncotype DX Breast DCIS Score Test; Oncotype DX Colon Recurrence Score Test; OncoExTra Test for tumor profiling for patients with advanced, metastatic, refractory, relapsed, or recurrent cancer; and Covid-19 testing services.