Principal Financial Group Inc. Grows Holdings in Align Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALGN)

Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Align Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALGN) by 2.7% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 82,020 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,168 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Align Technology were worth $20,859,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. increased its stake in Align Technology by 854.5% in the second quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 105 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC bought a new position in shares of Align Technology during the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. True Wealth Design LLC increased its position in shares of Align Technology by 10,700.0% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 108 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in Align Technology in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Finally, Neo Ivy Capital Management purchased a new stake in Align Technology in the third quarter worth approximately $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.43% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ALGN has been the topic of several research reports. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Align Technology in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Align Technology from $200.00 to $206.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of Align Technology from $285.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Align Technology from $310.00 to $280.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on Align Technology from $325.00 to $276.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $271.20.

Align Technology Stock Performance

NASDAQ ALGN opened at $213.50 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $15.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.20 and a beta of 1.66. Align Technology, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $196.09 and a fifty-two week high of $335.40. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $222.56 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $232.28.

Align Technology (NASDAQ:ALGN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The medical equipment provider reported $2.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $977.87 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $990.05 million. Align Technology had a net margin of 11.15% and a return on equity of 13.99%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.62 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Align Technology, Inc. will post 7.45 earnings per share for the current year.

About Align Technology

Align Technology, Inc designs, manufactures, and markets Invisalign clear aligners, and iTero intraoral scanners and services for orthodontists and general practitioner dentists in the United States, Switzerland, and internationally. The company's Clear Aligner segment offers comprehensive products, including Invisalign comprehensive package that addresses the orthodontic needs of younger patients, such as mandibular advancement, compliance indicators, and compensation for tooth eruption; and Invisalign First Phase I and Invisalign First Comprehensive Phase 2 package for younger patients generally between the ages of six and ten years, which is a mixture of primary/baby and permanent teeth.