Medina Manuel Hidalgo, a director at Guardant Health, Inc. (NASDAQ: GH), sold 1,300 shares of the company’s stock on March 6, 2024. This transaction, conducted at an average price of $91.54, totaled $119,002.00. Following the sale, Hidalgo’s holdings decreased significantly, with only 1,193 shares remaining, valued at approximately $109,207.22. This represents a reduction of 52.15% in his position.
The sale was documented in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which is accessible on their official website. During mid-day trading on March 8, 2024, Guardant Health’s stock maintained a steady price of $91.20, with a total volume of 1,712,241 shares traded, slightly below the average volume of 2,059,165 shares.
Company Performance and Analyst Ratings
Guardant Health has a market capitalization of $11.96 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of -27.55, indicating its current losses relative to its earnings. The firm’s stock has seen a range from a 12-month low of $34.88 to a high of $120.74.
In its most recent quarterly earnings report released on February 19, 2024, Guardant Health reported an earnings per share (EPS) of ($0.50), falling short of analysts’ expectations of ($0.43) by $0.07. Despite this, the company achieved a revenue of $281.27 million, surpassing analysts’ estimates of $269.74 million and reflecting a year-over-year revenue increase of 39.4%. In the previous year, the company reported an EPS of ($0.62).
Analysts remain cautiously optimistic about Guardant Health’s future. Currently, the consensus indicates a projected EPS of ($2.90) for the current fiscal year.
Investment Outlook and Analyst Recommendations
Recent reports from equity analysts show a range of perspectives on Guardant Health’s stock. On February 17, 2024, Robert W. Baird initiated coverage with an “outperform” rating and set a price target of $120.00. In a report dated December 1, 2023, Morgan Stanley raised its price target from $105.00 to $130.00, maintaining an “overweight” rating. Other firms, including Evercore and Barclays, also issued positive ratings and price targets ranging from $110.00 to $130.00.
Overall, twenty-one analysts have assigned a Buy rating to Guardant Health’s stock, while one analyst issued a Hold rating and another a Sell rating. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” with an average target price of $122.57.
Founded in 2012 and based in Redwood City, California, Guardant Health is at the forefront of precision oncology. The company specializes in blood-based cancer diagnostics, providing critical insights through its flagship product, Guardant360, which detects genomic alterations in patients with solid tumors. The company’s mission centers on improving cancer care by delivering actionable data to clinicians and researchers globally.
