HealthEquity (NASDAQ:HQY) Sets New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

HealthEquity, Inc. (NASDAQ:HQY) shares reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $113.90 and last traded at $112.97, with a volume of 164646 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $112.50.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on HQY shares. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of HealthEquity in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $108.00 price target on the stock. BTIG Research lifted their target price on HealthEquity from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Mizuho began coverage on HealthEquity in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $126.00 price target for the company. JMP Securities raised their price target on HealthEquity from $105.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on HealthEquity from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, HealthEquity has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $110.71.

HealthEquity Stock Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $101.40 and its 200 day moving average price is $90.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 3.20 and a quick ratio of 3.20. The firm has a market cap of $9.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 104.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.55.

HealthEquity (NASDAQ:HQY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, December 9th. The company reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.71 by ($0.12). HealthEquity had a return on equity of 9.70% and a net margin of 8.41%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.40 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that HealthEquity, Inc. will post 2.32 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Stuart B. Parker sold 25,000 shares of HealthEquity stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.72, for a total value of $2,418,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 19,061 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,843,579.92. This trade represents a 56.74 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Robert W. Selander sold 8,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.56, for a total transaction of $837,870.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 66,469 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,750,591.64. The trade was a 11.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Level Four Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of HealthEquity by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,736 shares of the company’s stock worth $263,000 after buying an additional 138 shares during the period. Premier Fund Managers Ltd lifted its position in HealthEquity by 22.7% during the fourth quarter. Premier Fund Managers Ltd now owns 11,076 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,073,000 after acquiring an additional 2,046 shares during the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its position in HealthEquity by 14.6% during the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 13,833 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,327,000 after acquiring an additional 1,765 shares during the last quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of HealthEquity during the fourth quarter worth approximately $249,000. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of HealthEquity in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $74,701,000. 99.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About HealthEquity

HealthEquity, Inc provides technology-enabled services platforms to consumers and employers in the United States. The company offers cloud-based platforms for individuals to make health saving and spending decisions, pay healthcare bills, receive personalized benefit information, earn wellness incentives, grow their savings, and make investment choices; and health savings accounts.