Alignment Healthcare (NASDAQ:ALHC) Sets New 52-Week High on Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Alignment Healthcare, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALHC) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Saturday after Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on the stock from $16.00 to $18.00. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a buy rating on the stock. Alignment Healthcare traded as high as $15.85 and last traded at $15.69, with a volume of 4768834 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $13.47.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on ALHC. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Alignment Healthcare in a research report on Friday. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Alignment Healthcare from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $17.00 price objective on shares of Alignment Healthcare in a research note on Monday, February 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $12.25.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO John E. Kao sold 90,000 shares of Alignment Healthcare stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.65, for a total value of $1,048,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 2,363,100 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,530,115. This trade represents a 3.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, President Dawn Christine Maroney sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.72, for a total value of $411,600.00. Following the sale, the president now owns 1,576,097 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,624,050.84. This trade represents a 1.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 441,002 shares of company stock worth $5,772,726 in the last three months. 6.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alignment Healthcare

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Creative Planning boosted its stake in Alignment Healthcare by 20.0% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 12,442 shares of the company’s stock worth $147,000 after buying an additional 2,072 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Alignment Healthcare by 1,335.1% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 194,043 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,294,000 after acquiring an additional 180,522 shares during the last quarter. Royce & Associates LP purchased a new position in shares of Alignment Healthcare during the 3rd quarter worth about $3,782,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new position in Alignment Healthcare during the 3rd quarter valued at about $131,000. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Alignment Healthcare in the 3rd quarter worth about $315,000. Institutional investors own 86.19% of the company’s stock.

Alignment Healthcare Trading Up 16.5 %

The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $13.50 and its 200-day simple moving average is $11.99. The firm has a market cap of $3.01 billion, a P/E ratio of -20.38 and a beta of 1.50. The company has a quick ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82.

Alignment Healthcare Company Profile

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.