Surgery Partners (NASDAQ:SGRY) Reaches New 52-Week Low – Time to Sell?

Surgery Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:SGRY) shares reached a new 52-week low on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $12.12 and last traded at $12.1550, with a volume of 151357 shares. The stock had previously closed at $12.65.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on SGRY shares. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on Surgery Partners from $31.00 to $20.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Surgery Partners in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Surgery Partners from $27.00 to $20.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 24th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Surgery Partners in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Surgery Partners from $18.00 to $14.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Surgery Partners presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $23.36.

Surgery Partners Trading Down 2.5%

The firm has a market cap of $1.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -19.44 and a beta of 1.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.71 and a current ratio of 1.87. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $14.69 and a 200 day moving average price of $17.50.

Surgery Partners (NASDAQ:SGRY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 2nd. The company reported $0.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by ($0.19). Surgery Partners had a positive return on equity of 1.28% and a negative net margin of 2.35%.The business had revenue of $885.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $866.54 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.44 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Surgery Partners, Inc. will post 0.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Surgery Partners announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, February 26th that authorizes the company to buyback $200.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 9.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Surgery Partners

In other news, insider Jennifer Baldock sold 10,082 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.70, for a total value of $138,123.40. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 332,272 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,552,126.40. This represents a 2.94% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO David T. Doherty sold 14,574 shares of Surgery Partners stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.84, for a total transaction of $201,704.16. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 88,803 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,229,033.52. This trade represents a 14.10% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 96,896 shares of company stock worth $1,284,058. 2.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Surgery Partners

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its holdings in Surgery Partners by 104.2% during the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,931,577 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,151,000 after acquiring an additional 985,748 shares during the period. Alpine Global Management LLC purchased a new stake in Surgery Partners during the fourth quarter worth about $175,000. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in Surgery Partners by 1,340.9% during the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 161,419 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,494,000 after purchasing an additional 150,216 shares during the period. One68 Global Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Surgery Partners during the fourth quarter worth about $371,000. Finally, Man Group plc acquired a new stake in shares of Surgery Partners during the fourth quarter worth about $5,080,000.

About Surgery Partners

Surgery Partners, Inc operates as a healthcare services provider specializing in the management and ownership of ambulatory surgery centers, surgical hospitals and multispecialty rehabilitation hospitals across the United States. Through its network of facilities, the company coordinates and delivers a broad range of outpatient surgical procedures in specialties such as orthopedics, ophthalmology, otolaryngology, gastroenterology, pain management and general surgery. Its integrated platform offers ancillary services including on-site imaging, laboratory testing, infusion therapy and physical, occupational and speech rehabilitation.

Since its establishment in 2010 and subsequent public listing in 2015, Surgery Partners has focused on strategic partnerships with physicians and health systems to expand access to cost-effective outpatient care.