Embecta (NASDAQ:EMBC) Shares Down 5.7% – Here’s Why

Embecta Corp. (NASDAQ:EMBC) shares traded down 5.7% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $15.31 and last traded at $15.23. 77,219 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 81% from the average session volume of 397,187 shares. The stock had previously closed at $16.15.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. BTIG Research upgraded Embecta from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $26.00 price target on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Embecta from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $13.00 to $20.00 in a research note on Monday, December 2nd.

Embecta Stock Performance

The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $19.38 and its 200 day simple moving average is $16.57. The company has a market cap of $878.05 million, a P/E ratio of 15.15, a PEG ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.20.

Embecta (NASDAQ:EMBC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by $0.20. Embecta had a negative return on equity of 19.22% and a net margin of 5.25%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Embecta Corp. will post 2.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Embecta Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.97%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Embecta’s payout ratio is 60.00%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Embecta

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in shares of Embecta by 6.8% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 59,537 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,230,000 after buying an additional 3,792 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its holdings in shares of Embecta by 322.9% in the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 83,517 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,728,000 after acquiring an additional 63,768 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its position in shares of Embecta by 111.2% during the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 7,284 shares of the company’s stock worth $150,000 after purchasing an additional 3,835 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Embecta by 14.8% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 566,993 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,708,000 after purchasing an additional 73,165 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Walleye Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Embecta in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $3,459,000. Institutional investors own 93.83% of the company’s stock.

Embecta Company Profile

Embecta Corp., a medical device company, focuses on the provision of various solutions to enhance the health and wellbeing of people living with diabetes. Its products include pen needles, syringes, and safety injection devices, as well as digital applications to assist people with managing patient's diabetes.