Russell Investments Group Ltd. Raises Position in The Cooper Companies, Inc. $COO

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its stake in The Cooper Companies, Inc. (NASDAQ:COO) by 18.8% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 835,763 shares of the medical device company’s stock after purchasing an additional 132,073 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned about 0.42% of Cooper Companies worth $59,473,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of COO. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its stake in shares of Cooper Companies by 1.7% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 24,461 shares of the medical device company’s stock worth $2,063,000 after purchasing an additional 412 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its holdings in Cooper Companies by 17.8% during the 1st quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 45,727 shares of the medical device company’s stock worth $3,857,000 after buying an additional 6,894 shares during the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of Cooper Companies by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 148,261 shares of the medical device company’s stock worth $12,506,000 after acquiring an additional 6,657 shares in the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of Cooper Companies by 10.4% in the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 21,972 shares of the medical device company’s stock valued at $1,853,000 after acquiring an additional 2,062 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Cooper Companies by 28.5% during the 1st quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 13,722 shares of the medical device company’s stock worth $1,157,000 after acquiring an additional 3,041 shares in the last quarter. 24.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

COO has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Cooper Companies from $76.00 to $66.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 28th. Morgan Stanley set a $76.00 price objective on Cooper Companies and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 28th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $72.00 target price on shares of Cooper Companies in a report on Thursday, November 13th. Weiss Ratings raised Cooper Companies from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $94.00 price target on shares of Cooper Companies in a research report on Thursday, August 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $84.77.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cooper Companies

In related news, CEO Albert G. White III bought 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 5th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $68.39 per share, for a total transaction of $683,900.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 226,151 shares in the company, valued at $15,466,466.89. This trade represents a 4.63% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Brian G. Andrews acquired 1,525 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $65.68 per share, with a total value of $100,162.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the executive vice president directly owned 22,191 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,457,504.88. This trade represents a 7.38% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have acquired 17,975 shares of company stock valued at $1,216,346. 1.98% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Cooper Companies Stock Down 0.3%

Cooper Companies stock opened at $77.94 on Friday. The Cooper Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $61.78 and a fifty-two week high of $106.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.02. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $71.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $71.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 2.12.

Cooper Companies (NASDAQ:COO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 27th. The medical device company reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.07 by $0.03. Cooper Companies had a net margin of 10.08% and a return on equity of 9.82%. The company had revenue of $1.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.06 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.96 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that The Cooper Companies, Inc. will post 3.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cooper Companies declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, September 17th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the medical device company to buy up to 15.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Cooper Companies Company Profile

The Cooper Companies, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and markets contact lens wearers. The company operates in two segments, CooperVision and CooperSurgical. The CooperVision segment provides spherical lense, including lenses that correct near and farsightedness; and toric and multifocal lenses comprising lenses correcting vision challenges, such as astigmatism, presbyopia, and myopia in the Americas, Europe, Middle East, Africa, and Asia Pacific.