AtriCure (NASDAQ:ATRC) Downgraded to Hold Rating by Zacks Research

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

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings cut AtriCure from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “sell (e+)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $54.00 price objective on shares of AtriCure in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Citizens Jmp dropped their price objective on AtriCure from $60.00 to $52.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. UBS Group lowered their target price on AtriCure from $60.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Freedom Capital raised AtriCure to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $48.71.

AtriCure Stock Performance

NASDAQ ATRC opened at $27.10 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $1.37 billion, a PE ratio of -271.00 and a beta of 1.26. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $28.18 and its 200-day simple moving average is $33.27. AtriCure has a 1-year low of $25.36 and a 1-year high of $43.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 4.29 and a quick ratio of 3.18.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Karen Prange sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.65, for a total value of $85,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 26,373 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $755,586.45. The trade was a 10.21% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Vinayak Doraiswamy sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.83, for a total value of $149,150.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 96,875 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,889,781.25. This represents a 4.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 4.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AtriCure

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in AtriCure by 13.7% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 768,561 shares of the medical device company’s stock worth $21,927,000 after purchasing an additional 92,830 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System increased its position in AtriCure by 33.3% during the 1st quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 59,947 shares of the medical device company’s stock worth $1,710,000 after purchasing an additional 14,987 shares during the period. Quantinno Capital Management LP acquired a new position in AtriCure during the 1st quarter worth approximately $277,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its position in AtriCure by 8.6% during the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 54,015 shares of the medical device company’s stock worth $1,541,000 after purchasing an additional 4,296 shares during the period. Finally, Rice Hall James & Associates LLC acquired a new position in AtriCure during the 1st quarter worth approximately $719,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.11% of the company’s stock.

AtriCure Company Profile

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.