AtriCure (NASDAQ:ATRC) Rating Lowered to “Hold” at Zacks Research

AtriCure (NASDAQ:ATRC) was downgraded by research analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on ATRC. Citizens Jmp cut their target price on shares of AtriCure from $60.00 to $52.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. UBS Group dropped their price target on AtriCure from $60.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered AtriCure from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $36.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of AtriCure in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their price objective on shares of AtriCure from $64.00 to $53.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $48.43.

AtriCure Trading Up 0.4%

AtriCure stock opened at $32.38 on Wednesday. AtriCure has a one year low of $28.29 and a one year high of $43.18. The business’s fifty day moving average is $38.41 and its 200 day moving average is $36.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 3.87 and a quick ratio of 2.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.61 billion, a PE ratio of -134.92 and a beta of 1.41.

AtriCure (NASDAQ:ATRC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The medical device company reported $0.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.04) by $0.10. AtriCure had a negative net margin of 2.14% and a negative return on equity of 1.17%. The firm had revenue of $140.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $140.50 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.33) EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 13.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that AtriCure will post -0.6 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at AtriCure

In related news, Director Sven Wehrwein sold 5,033 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.32, for a total transaction of $187,831.56. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 34,374 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,282,837.68. This trade represents a 12.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Justin J. Noznesky sold 5,166 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.29, for a total value of $192,640.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 78,798 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,938,377.42. This represents a 6.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 15,166 shares of company stock valued at $569,218. Corporate insiders own 3.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AtriCure

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. grew its position in shares of AtriCure by 6.7% during the second quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 4,941 shares of the medical device company’s stock valued at $162,000 after purchasing an additional 312 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of AtriCure by 6.5% in the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 6,188 shares of the medical device company’s stock worth $218,000 after buying an additional 380 shares in the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas boosted its stake in AtriCure by 5.4% during the second quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 7,512 shares of the medical device company’s stock valued at $246,000 after buying an additional 385 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in AtriCure by 59.8% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,146 shares of the medical device company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 429 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Scotia Capital Inc. raised its holdings in shares of AtriCure by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 37,677 shares of the medical device company’s stock worth $1,328,000 after acquiring an additional 457 shares in the last quarter. 99.11% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About AtriCure

AtriCure, Inc is a medical device company focused on the development, manufacture and marketing of innovative therapies to treat atrial fibrillation (AF) and related conditions. Founded in 2000 and headquartered in Mason, Ohio, AtriCure has established itself as a leader in surgical ablation devices designed to interrupt the errant electrical pathways that cause AF. The company’s solutions are used by cardiac surgeons and electrophysiologists to reduce the risk of stroke and improve patient outcomes in the treatment of both paroxysmal and persistent AF.

The company’s product portfolio centers on its Synergy Surgical Ablation System, which delivers controlled radiofrequency energy in a minimally invasive format, and the cryoICE Cryoablation System, which offers an alternative ablation modality using precise freezing techniques.