Alignment Healthcare (NASDAQ:ALHC) Shares Gap Down - Time to Sell?

Alignment Healthcare, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALHC - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $13.90, but opened at $13.60. Alignment Healthcare shares last traded at $13.92, with a volume of 111,699 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on ALHC shares. KeyCorp assumed coverage on shares of Alignment Healthcare in a report on Friday, October 11th. They issued a "sector weight" rating for the company. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Alignment Healthcare from $14.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $17.00 price objective on shares of Alignment Healthcare in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. UBS Group raised their target price on Alignment Healthcare from $9.00 to $12.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on Alignment Healthcare from $7.00 to $8.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $11.88.

Alignment Healthcare Price Performance

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $11.92 and a 200-day moving average of $10.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a current ratio of 1.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.79 billion, a P/E ratio of -18.94 and a beta of 1.45.

Alignment Healthcare (NASDAQ:ALHC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported ($0.14) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.14). Alignment Healthcare had a negative return on equity of 108.69% and a negative net margin of 5.84%. The firm had revenue of $692.43 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $662.11 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($0.19) earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 51.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Alignment Healthcare, Inc. will post -0.69 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Alignment Healthcare

In other Alignment Healthcare news, CEO John E. Kao sold 90,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.06, for a total value of $1,175,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,273,100 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,686,686. This trade represents a 3.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Dawn Christine Maroney sold 30,000 shares of Alignment Healthcare stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.35, for a total transaction of $340,500.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 1,696,097 shares in the company, valued at $19,250,700.95. This represents a 1.74 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 539,224 shares of company stock worth $6,808,290 over the last three months. 6.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alignment Healthcare

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Deerfield Management Company L.P. Series C increased its position in Alignment Healthcare by 31.8% in the second quarter. Deerfield Management Company L.P. Series C now owns 10,901,485 shares of the company's stock worth $85,250,000 after buying an additional 2,630,788 shares in the last quarter. Royce & Associates LP bought a new position in shares of Alignment Healthcare during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $3,782,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its holdings in Alignment Healthcare by 16.8% in the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,565,800 shares of the company's stock worth $12,245,000 after acquiring an additional 225,000 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in Alignment Healthcare by 249.3% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 288,219 shares of the company's stock worth $3,407,000 after acquiring an additional 205,705 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Alignment Healthcare during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,512,000. 86.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Alignment Healthcare

Alignment Healthcare, Inc, a tech-enabled Medicare advantage company, operates consumer-centric health care platform for seniors in the United States. It provides customized health care designed to meet the needs of a diverse array of seniors through its Medicare advantage plans. The company was founded in 2013 and is based in Orange, California.