Wasatch Advisors LP Trims Stock Holdings in Exact Sciences Co. (NASDAQ:EXAS)

Wasatch Advisors LP lowered its stake in shares of Exact Sciences Co. (NASDAQ:EXAS) by 4.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 261,580 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 13,248 shares during the period. Wasatch Advisors LP owned 0.14% of Exact Sciences worth $19,352,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Exact Sciences by 172.0% in the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 328,317 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $22,398,000 after acquiring an additional 207,623 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in shares of Exact Sciences by 1.6% in the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 18,858 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,310,000 after purchasing an additional 293 shares during the period. New York Life Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Exact Sciences by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 21,106 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,561,000 after purchasing an additional 1,014 shares during the period. Aviva PLC raised its position in shares of Exact Sciences by 383.0% in the third quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 107,054 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $7,303,000 after buying an additional 84,888 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Evoke Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Exact Sciences during the fourth quarter valued at $2,297,000. 88.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on EXAS shares. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Exact Sciences in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Exact Sciences in a report on Monday, June 3rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $75.00 price target on the stock. BTIG Research cut their price objective on Exact Sciences from $85.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 9th. TheStreet downgraded Exact Sciences from a “c-” rating to a “d+” rating in a report on Monday, February 26th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their price objective on shares of Exact Sciences from $90.00 to $85.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $93.07.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Sarah Condella sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total transaction of $140,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 71,787 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,025,090. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Sarah Condella sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total value of $140,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 71,787 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,025,090. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Kevin T. Conroy sold 1,155 shares of Exact Sciences stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.15, for a total value of $69,473.25. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,156,191 shares in the company, valued at $69,544,888.65. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 5,498 shares of company stock worth $370,105. 1.36% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Exact Sciences Price Performance

EXAS stock traded down $0.88 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $42.01. 21,792 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,534,380. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 1.45 and a current ratio of 1.64. Exact Sciences Co. has a 1 year low of $41.86 and a 1 year high of $100.77. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $58.36 and its two-hundred day moving average is $62.56.

Exact Sciences (NASDAQ:EXAS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The medical research company reported ($0.50) EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.50). Exact Sciences had a negative net margin of 9.48% and a negative return on equity of 7.12%. The firm had revenue of $637.52 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $624.95 million. Analysts anticipate that Exact Sciences Co. will post -1.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.