First Light Asset Management LLC Cuts Holdings in Guardant Health, Inc. $GH

First Light Asset Management LLC decreased its holdings in Guardant Health, Inc. (NASDAQ:GH) by 4.9% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 280,299 shares of the company’s stock after selling 14,452 shares during the quarter. Guardant Health accounts for about 2.3% of First Light Asset Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. First Light Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Guardant Health were worth $25,891,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of GH. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Guardant Health by 56.5% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 71,534 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,012,000 after acquiring an additional 25,831 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Guardant Health during the 1st quarter worth $274,000. Sei Investments Co. boosted its position in Guardant Health by 15.8% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 77,308 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,023,000 after purchasing an additional 10,538 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its position in Guardant Health by 9.4% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 632,630 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,922,000 after purchasing an additional 54,284 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in Guardant Health by 56.4% in the second quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 111,445 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,800,000 after purchasing an additional 40,209 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.60% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Guardant Health

In other news, CEO Amirali Talasaz sold 143,028 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.54, for a total transaction of $21,674,463.12. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,881,336 shares in the company, valued at $285,097,657.44. This represents a 7.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Michael Brian Bell sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.62, for a total transaction of $257,240.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 47,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,110,607.58. The trade was a 4.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 708,565 shares of company stock valued at $90,556,597. Insiders own 5.60% of the company’s stock.

Guardant Health Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:GH opened at $147.33 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $139.41 and its 200 day moving average is $112.02. Guardant Health, Inc. has a 1 year low of $40.35 and a 1 year high of $174.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.54 billion, a P/E ratio of -43.46 and a beta of 1.59.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on GH shares. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on shares of Guardant Health from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Guardant Health in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $150.00 price target on the stock. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of Guardant Health from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Guardant Health in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Guardant Health from $135.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, June 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $160.04.

Guardant Health Company Profile

Guardant Health, Inc is a precision oncology company specializing in blood-based cancer diagnostics. Founded in 2012 and headquartered in Redwood City, California, the company develops non-invasive tests that use circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) to profile genomic alterations in patients with solid tumors. Guardant Health’s mission is to advance cancer care by providing actionable data to clinicians, pharmaceutical partners and researchers worldwide.

The company’s flagship product, Guardant360, is a next-generation sequencing (NGS) assay designed to detect mutations, copy number variations and select fusions in more than 70 cancer-related genes.