Guardant Health (NASDAQ:GH) Shares Down 6.4% – What’s Next?

Guardant Health, Inc. (NASDAQ:GH)’s share price was down 6.4% during mid-day trading on Tuesday. The company traded as low as $175.16 and last traded at $175.2690. 942,091 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 58% from the average session volume of 2,225,400 shares. The stock had previously closed at $187.22.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on GH shares. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Guardant Health from $130.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on shares of Guardant Health from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Guardant Health from $150.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $200.00 price target on shares of Guardant Health in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Guardant Health in a research note on Tuesday, August 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $188.54.

Guardant Health Price Performance

The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $166.45 and its 200-day simple moving average is $134.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.38 billion, a P/E ratio of -49.90 and a beta of 1.58.

Guardant Health (NASDAQ:GH) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported ($0.42) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.76) by $0.34. The business had revenue of $334.98 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $314.23 million. The business’s revenue was up 44.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.44) earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Guardant Health, Inc. will post -2.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Guardant Health news, CEO Amirali Talasaz sold 37,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.16, for a total value of $6,343,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 37,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,343,500. This trade represents a 50.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Terilyn Monroe sold 46,300 shares of Guardant Health stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.12, for a total transaction of $7,645,056.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 22,979 shares in the company, valued at $3,794,292.48. This trade represents a 66.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 178,755 shares of company stock worth $30,040,636. 5.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in GH. ABS Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Guardant Health during the second quarter valued at $345,069,000. MCF Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Guardant Health by 755.0% in the second quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 171 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the last quarter. TrinityBridge Ltd acquired a new stake in Guardant Health in the second quarter valued at $45,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new position in Guardant Health during the 2nd quarter worth $59,000. Finally, EFG International AG acquired a new position in Guardant Health during the 2nd quarter worth about $60,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.60% of the company’s stock.

Guardant Health Company Profile

Guardant Health, Inc (NASDAQ: GH) is a precision oncology company that develops blood- and tissue-based diagnostic tests designed to help detect cancer, guide treatment decisions and monitor patients throughout the course of their disease. Its testing platforms analyze circulating tumor DNA and other genomic information to provide insights into a tumor’s molecular characteristics.

The company’s products include Guardant360 tests for comprehensive genomic profiling in advanced cancer, Guardant360 CDx, which is approved as a companion diagnostic for certain targeted therapies, and Guardant360 Response for assessing how a tumor may be responding to treatment.