Alphatec Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NASDAQ:ATEC)

Alphatec Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATEC) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Tuesday. Stock investors purchased 4,816 put options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 246% compared to the average volume of 1,392 put options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on ATEC shares. Barclays lifted their price target on Alphatec from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on Alphatec from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $16.00 price target on shares of Alphatec in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Alphatec from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $20.00 price objective on shares of Alphatec in a report on Monday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Alphatec presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $17.67.

Alphatec Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ATEC opened at $9.91 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 30.21, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 2.32. The company has a market capitalization of $1.43 billion, a PE ratio of -7.74 and a beta of 1.20. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $10.41 and a 200-day moving average of $9.38. Alphatec has a one year low of $4.88 and a one year high of $13.79.

Alphatec (NASDAQ:ATEC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The medical technology company reported ($0.23) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.19) by ($0.04). Alphatec had a negative return on equity of 541.39% and a negative net margin of 31.06%. The company had revenue of $176.79 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $172.74 million. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Alphatec will post -1.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP David Sponsel sold 33,732 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.83, for a total transaction of $365,317.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 668,977 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,245,020.91. This represents a 4.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Patrick Miles sold 12,691 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.64, for a total transaction of $135,032.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 5,857,603 shares in the company, valued at approximately $62,324,895.92. This trade represents a 0.22 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 278,800 shares of company stock valued at $3,201,469 over the last quarter. Insiders own 22.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alphatec

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Lido Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Alphatec by 8.4% in the fourth quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 12,247 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $112,000 after buying an additional 953 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in Alphatec by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 312,954 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $2,873,000 after buying an additional 1,120 shares during the period. Comerica Bank lifted its position in Alphatec by 66.8% in the 4th quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 3,116 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 1,248 shares in the last quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Alphatec by 14.1% during the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 10,890 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $100,000 after buying an additional 1,342 shares during the period. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers boosted its stake in shares of Alphatec by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 139,088 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $1,277,000 after buying an additional 1,746 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.35% of the company’s stock.

About Alphatec

Alphatec Holdings, Inc, a medical technology company, designs, develops, and advances technologies for the surgical treatment of spinal disorders in the United States and internationally. It manufactures and sells implants and instruments through third-party suppliers. The company offers Alpha InformatiX product platform, including EOS imaging system that provides full-body imaging; VEA alignment mobile application, which leverages EOS technology to more quickly quantify alignment parameters on a mobile device; SafeOp Neural InformatiX System that automates electromyographic and somatosensory evoked potential monitoring; and Valence, an intra-operative system that integrates navigation and robotics into spine procedures, as well as Sigma Prone TransPsoas (PTP) Access and PTP Patient Positioning Systems.