Traders Buy High Volume of Alphatec Put Options (NASDAQ:ATEC)

Alphatec Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATEC) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Traders bought 2,654 put options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 99% compared to the average volume of 1,337 put options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Alphatec from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Alphatec from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $20.00 price target on shares of Alphatec in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $16.00 price target on shares of Alphatec in a research note on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Alphatec has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $17.67.

Alphatec Trading Up 9.8 %

Shares of ATEC stock traded up $1.08 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $12.14. The company had a trading volume of 1,187,098 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,622,041. Alphatec has a fifty-two week low of $4.88 and a fifty-two week high of $15.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 30.21, a current ratio of 2.32 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The company’s fifty day moving average is $10.57 and its 200 day moving average is $8.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.72 billion, a PE ratio of -9.42 and a beta of 1.43.

Alphatec (NASDAQ:ATEC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The medical technology company reported ($0.23) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.19) by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $176.79 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $172.74 million. Alphatec had a negative return on equity of 541.39% and a negative net margin of 31.06%. Research analysts expect that Alphatec will post -1.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alphatec

In related news, CEO Patrick Miles sold 50,000 shares of Alphatec stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.03, for a total transaction of $601,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 6,152,544 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $74,015,104.32. This trade represents a 0.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, COO Scott Lish sold 27,453 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.49, for a total transaction of $315,434.97. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 867,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,969,608.73. This trade represents a 3.07 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 267,715 shares of company stock valued at $3,048,819. Company insiders own 22.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alphatec

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Alphatec during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Comerica Bank increased its stake in Alphatec by 66.8% during the 4th quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 3,116 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 1,248 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in Alphatec by 973.3% in the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,669 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 4,234 shares during the period. Quarry LP grew its stake in shares of Alphatec by 79.2% in the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 5,374 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 2,375 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Newton One Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Alphatec in the fourth quarter worth $50,000. 66.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Alphatec

Alphatec Holdings, Inc, a medical technology company, designs, develops, and advances technologies for the surgical treatment of spinal disorders in the United States and internationally. It manufactures and sells implants and instruments through third-party suppliers. The company offers Alpha InformatiX product platform, including EOS imaging system that provides full-body imaging; VEA alignment mobile application, which leverages EOS technology to more quickly quantify alignment parameters on a mobile device; SafeOp Neural InformatiX System that automates electromyographic and somatosensory evoked potential monitoring; and Valence, an intra-operative system that integrates navigation and robotics into spine procedures, as well as Sigma Prone TransPsoas (PTP) Access and PTP Patient Positioning Systems.