Align Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALGN) Short Interest Up 46.8% in March

Align Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALGN) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 4,352,518 shares, an increase of 46.8% from the March 15th total of 2,964,353 shares. Currently, 6.1% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 1,320,228 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.3 days.

Insider Buying and Selling at Align Technology

In other Align Technology news, EVP John Morici sold 7,969 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $189.31, for a total transaction of $1,508,611.39. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 8,237 shares in the company, valued at $1,559,346.47. This trade represents a 49.17% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.66% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Align Technology

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Align Technology by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,301,611 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,039,528,000 after purchasing an additional 58,546 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its position in Align Technology by 52.2% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,643,221 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $725,039,000 after acquiring an additional 1,592,848 shares during the last quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd grew its position in Align Technology by 18.3% during the 3rd quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 2,267,192 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $283,898,000 after acquiring an additional 350,883 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in Align Technology by 37.4% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,497,535 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $187,521,000 after acquiring an additional 407,559 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital World Investors grew its position in Align Technology by 13.2% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 1,490,503 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $232,742,000 after acquiring an additional 173,641 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.43% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on ALGN shares. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Align Technology from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Align Technology from $155.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Barclays upgraded Align Technology from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $200.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Align Technology in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Align Technology from $181.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $201.31.

Align Technology Stock Performance

Shares of ALGN opened at $186.53 on Thursday. Align Technology has a 52-week low of $122.00 and a 52-week high of $208.30. The business’s fifty day moving average is $179.42 and its 200-day moving average is $159.82. The firm has a market cap of $13.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.96, a PEG ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 1.81.

Align Technology (NASDAQ:ALGN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The medical equipment provider reported $3.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.99 by $0.30. Align Technology had a return on equity of 15.16% and a net margin of 10.17%.The company had revenue of $1.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.44 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Align Technology will post 7.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Align Technology

Align Technology, Inc (NASDAQ: ALGN) pioneered the use of digital technology in orthodontics through the development of the Invisalign system, a series of clear, removable aligners that provide an alternative to traditional metal braces. Since its founding in 1997 by Zia Chishti and Kelsey Wirth, the Tempe, Arizona–based company has expanded its focus to include intraoral scanners, CAD/CAM software for dental laboratories and comprehensive digital dentistry solutions.

The company’s signature Invisalign system leverages 3D imaging and computer-aided design (CAD) to create customized aligners that gradually reposition teeth, improving patient comfort and treatment predictability.