QuidelOrtho (NASDAQ:QDEL) Hits New 52-Week Low – Here’s What Happened

QuidelOrtho Corporation (NASDAQ:QDEL) shares hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $14.26 and last traded at $14.30, with a volume of 260814 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $15.32.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

QDEL has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of QuidelOrtho in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. UBS Group set a $30.00 price objective on QuidelOrtho in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Wall Street Zen raised QuidelOrtho from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, April 4th. Citigroup increased their price target on QuidelOrtho from $23.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered QuidelOrtho from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $31.50.

QuidelOrtho Trading Down 7.6%

The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $963.33 million, a P/E ratio of -0.86 and a beta of 0.92. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $21.08 and a 200-day moving average of $25.64.

QuidelOrtho (NASDAQ:QDEL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.03. QuidelOrtho had a positive return on equity of 5.91% and a negative net margin of 41.46%.The business had revenue of $723.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $699.80 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.63 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that QuidelOrtho Corporation will post 2.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at QuidelOrtho

In other QuidelOrtho news, Director Matthew Strobeck bought 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $23.96 per share, for a total transaction of $239,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 27,775 shares in the company, valued at approximately $665,489. The trade was a 56.26% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Brian J. Blaser bought 10,540 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $23.59 per share, for a total transaction of $248,638.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 40,073 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $945,322.07. The trade was a 35.69% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have acquired a total of 23,910 shares of company stock worth $567,973 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of QuidelOrtho

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of QuidelOrtho by 50.3% during the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,082 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 362 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of QuidelOrtho by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 13,164 shares of the company’s stock worth $376,000 after purchasing an additional 388 shares during the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue grew its stake in shares of QuidelOrtho by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 38,333 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,093,000 after purchasing an additional 424 shares during the last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC lifted its holdings in QuidelOrtho by 100.6% in the third quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 989 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 496 shares during the period. Finally, Moody National Bank Trust Division lifted its holdings in QuidelOrtho by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division now owns 51,512 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,471,000 after buying an additional 526 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.00% of the company’s stock.

QuidelOrtho Company Profile

QuidelOrtho is a global diagnostics company formed through the merger of Quidel Corporation and Ortho Clinical Diagnostics. The combined entity develops, manufactures and markets a broad portfolio of rapid and high-throughput diagnostic solutions across immunoassay, molecular diagnostics and transfusion medicine. Its offerings span point-of-care platforms for acute care testing as well as large-scale automated systems designed for clinical laboratories and blood banks.

The company’s product range includes rapid antigen and antibody tests for infectious diseases, molecular assays utilizing nucleic acid amplification technology, and integrated immunodiagnostic analyzers.