DnB Asset Management AS Sells 3,781 Shares of Henry Schein, Inc. (NASDAQ:HSIC)

DnB Asset Management AS decreased its position in Henry Schein, Inc. (NASDAQ:HSIC) by 13.9% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 23,472 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,781 shares during the quarter. DnB Asset Management AS’s holdings in Henry Schein were worth $1,624,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA raised its holdings in Henry Schein by 8.9% in the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 77,848 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,387,000 after acquiring an additional 6,338 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Henry Schein in the fourth quarter valued at about $103,301,000. Blair William & Co. IL increased its stake in shares of Henry Schein by 9.0% in the fourth quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 6,906 shares of the company’s stock worth $478,000 after purchasing an additional 568 shares during the period. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd lifted its position in shares of Henry Schein by 10.3% during the 4th quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 24,957 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,727,000 after purchasing an additional 2,338 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co boosted its stake in Henry Schein by 11.3% during the 4th quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 12,660 shares of the company’s stock valued at $876,000 after purchasing an additional 1,285 shares during the period. 96.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Henry Schein Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:HSIC opened at $69.07 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $8.58 billion, a PE ratio of 28.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 1.42. The company’s fifty day moving average is $74.42 and its 200-day moving average is $72.67. Henry Schein, Inc. has a 52 week low of $63.67 and a 52 week high of $82.49.

Henry Schein (NASDAQ:HSIC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The company reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.23 by ($0.04). Henry Schein had a return on equity of 12.90% and a net margin of 2.51%. The firm had revenue of $3.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.25 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.66 earnings per share. Henry Schein’s quarterly revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Henry Schein, Inc. will post 4.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Henry Schein

In other Henry Schein news, CEO Bradford C. Connett sold 4,036 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.15, for a total value of $287,161.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 62,688 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,460,251.20. This trade represents a 6.05 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Philip A. Laskawy sold 2,604 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.04, for a total transaction of $184,988.16. Following the transaction, the director now owns 24,805 shares in the company, valued at $1,762,147.20. The trade was a 9.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.14% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on HSIC shares. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Henry Schein from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Bank of America upgraded shares of Henry Schein from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $69.00 to $84.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Mizuho initiated coverage on shares of Henry Schein in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $75.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on Henry Schein in a research report on Friday, February 14th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $80.00 target price on the stock. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on Henry Schein from $83.00 to $80.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $81.10.

Henry Schein Company Profile

Henry Schein, Inc provides health care products and services to dental practitioners, laboratories, physician practices, and ambulatory surgery centers, government, institutional health care clinics, and other alternate care clinics worldwide. It operates through two segments, Health Care Distribution, and Technology and Value-Added Services.