AtriCure (NASDAQ:ATRC) Price Target Raised to $70.00

AtriCure (NASDAQ:ATRC) had its price objective upped by Needham & Company LLC from $64.00 to $70.00 in a research note released on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the medical device company’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently commented on the company. Citizens Jmp lifted their target price on AtriCure from $52.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. BTIG Research increased their price target on AtriCure from $63.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. UBS Group downgraded AtriCure from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Citigroup restated a “market outperform” rating on shares of AtriCure in a report on Wednesday, October 21st. Finally, Raymond James Financial set a $52.00 target price on shares of AtriCure in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, AtriCure currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $61.80.

AtriCure Trading Down 4.5%

Shares of ATRC stock traded down $2.74 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $58.54. 614,651 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 706,027. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 195.14 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 4.22 and a quick ratio of 3.19. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $56.81 and its 200-day moving average price is $38.73. AtriCure has a 52-week low of $25.36 and a 52-week high of $66.02.

AtriCure (NASDAQ:ATRC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 3rd. The medical device company reported $0.17 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.06) by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $154.45 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $151.05 million. AtriCure had a return on equity of 2.34% and a net margin of 1.85%. As a group, research analysts forecast that AtriCure will post 0.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Regina Groves sold 5,313 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.22, for a total transaction of $288,070.86. Following the transaction, the director owned 34,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,873,084.12. This represents a 13.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Karl Dahlquist sold 9,370 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.89, for a total value of $458,099.30. Following the transaction, the insider owned 87,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,269,025.91. This trade represents a 9.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 39,026 shares of company stock valued at $2,172,263. Corporate insiders own 4.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of AtriCure

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ATRC. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AtriCure during the second quarter worth about $125,198,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in shares of AtriCure in the second quarter valued at approximately $24,465,000. Grandeur Peak Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of AtriCure in the second quarter valued at approximately $16,435,000. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in AtriCure during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $14,028,000. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in AtriCure during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $9,388,000. 99.11% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AtriCure Company Profile

AtriCure, Inc is a medical device company that develops and sells products for the surgical treatment of atrial fibrillation (AFib) and related conditions. Its technologies are designed to support cardiac surgeons and electrophysiologists performing tissue ablation, left atrial appendage management and other procedures intended to restore or maintain normal heart rhythm.

The company’s product portfolio includes the AtriClip device, which is used to exclude the left atrial appendage, along with surgical ablation systems such as the Isolator Synergy clamps and cryoablation products.