Blueshift Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Varian Medical Systems, Inc. (NYSE:VAR) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 9,599 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,363,000.
A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VAR. Marshall Wace North America L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Varian Medical Systems by 452.7% in the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace North America L.P. now owns 874,525 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $124,191,000 after purchasing an additional 716,309 shares in the last quarter. Fiera Capital Corp lifted its holdings in Varian Medical Systems by 20.7% during the 4th quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 3,239,226 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $460,003,000 after purchasing an additional 556,316 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management & Equity Research Inc. boosted its position in Varian Medical Systems by 170.5% in the fourth quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management & Equity Research Inc. now owns 768,075 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $109,074,000 after buying an additional 484,173 shares in the last quarter. Madison Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Varian Medical Systems in the fourth quarter valued at about $65,435,000. Finally, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ grew its stake in Varian Medical Systems by 771.1% during the fourth quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 267,319 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $37,962,000 after buying an additional 236,630 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.85% of the company’s stock.
Shares of VAR stock opened at $99.52 on Friday. Varian Medical Systems, Inc. has a 1 year low of $98.31 and a 1 year high of $150.06. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $130.99 and its 200-day moving average is $129.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.00, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.
Varian Medical Systems (NYSE:VAR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The medical equipment provider reported $1.16 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.21 by ($0.05). Varian Medical Systems had a net margin of 8.92% and a return on equity of 24.40%. The company had revenue of $828.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $829.36 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.06 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Varian Medical Systems, Inc. will post 4.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
In related news, CEO Dow R. Wilson sold 38,909 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.00, for a total transaction of $4,279,990.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 121,267 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,339,370. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Kolleen T. Kennedy sold 6,106 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.28, for a total transaction of $874,867.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 32,680 shares in the company, valued at $4,682,390.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 54,595 shares of company stock worth $6,533,833. 0.78% of the stock is owned by company insiders.
A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Varian Medical Systems from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $130.00 to $164.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Zacks Investment Research raised Varian Medical Systems from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $148.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. BTIG Research dropped their price target on Varian Medical Systems from to in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Varian Medical Systems in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $171.00 price objective for the company. Finally, ValuEngine raised Varian Medical Systems from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Varian Medical Systems presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $155.13.
Varian Medical Systems Company Profile
Varian Medical Systems, Inc designs, manufactures, sells, and services medical devices and software products for treating cancer and other medical conditions worldwide. It operates through two segments, Oncology Systems and Proton Solutions. The Oncology Systems segment offers hardware and software products for treating cancer with radiotherapy, fixed field intensity-modulated radiation therapy, image-guided radiation therapy, volumetric modulated arc therapy, stereotactic radiosurgery, stereotactic body radiotherapy, and brachytherapy, as well as related quality assurance equipment.
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