Short Interest in Hologic, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOLX) Rises By 32.2%

Hologic, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOLX) saw a large increase in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 5,870,000 shares, an increase of 32.2% from the February 28th total of 4,440,000 shares. Currently, 2.6% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,540,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.3 days.

Hologic Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ HOLX traded down $0.38 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $61.39. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 623,989 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,806,044. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 3.49 and a quick ratio of 2.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.97. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $65.08 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $73.11. Hologic has a 1 year low of $60.34 and a 1 year high of $84.67.

Hologic (NASDAQ:HOLX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical equipment provider reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.01. Hologic had a return on equity of 19.72% and a net margin of 18.42%. On average, equities analysts predict that Hologic will post 4.28 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on HOLX. Leerink Partnrs cut shares of Hologic from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Argus cut shares of Hologic from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Leerink Partners lowered shares of Hologic from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $80.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Hologic from $80.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $90.00 target price (down previously from $95.00) on shares of Hologic in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $84.62.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Hologic by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,409,327 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $847,944,000 after purchasing an additional 81,057 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Hologic by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,732,131 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $412,159,000 after buying an additional 144,838 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Hologic by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,917,551 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $354,506,000 after buying an additional 24,358 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Hologic by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 4,403,220 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $322,272,000 after acquiring an additional 129,035 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Hologic by 16.4% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,070,384 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $293,434,000 after acquiring an additional 572,187 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.73% of the company’s stock.

Hologic Company Profile

Hologic, Inc develops, manufactures, and supplies diagnostics products, medical imaging systems, and surgical products for women's health through early detection and treatment. The company operates through four segments: Diagnostics, Breast Health, GYN Surgical, and Skeletal Health. It provides Aptima molecular diagnostic assays to detect the infectious microorganisms; Aptima viral load assays for Hepatitis B virus, Hepatitis C virus, human immunodeficiency virus, and human cytomegalo virus; Aptima bacterial vaginosis and candida vaginitis assays for the diagnosis of vaginitis; Aptima SARS-CoV-2 and Panther Fusion SARS-CoV-2 assays to detect SARS-CoV-2; ThinPrep System for cytology applications; and Rapid Fetal Fibronectin Test that assists physicians in assessing the risk of pre-term birth.