Guardant Health (NASDAQ:GH) Shares Gap Up Following Insider Buying Activity

Guardant Health, Inc. (NASDAQ:GH – Get Rating) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday after an insider bought additional shares in the company. The stock had previously closed at $26.78, but opened at $27.65. Guardant Health shares last traded at $28.37, with a volume of 312,648 shares.

Specifically, CEO Amirali Talasaz bought 40,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 13th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $25.66 per share, with a total value of $1,026,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,893,845 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,596,062.70. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, CEO Helmy Eltoukhy acquired 8,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 15th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $26.15 per share, for a total transaction of $224,890.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 2,049,238 shares in the company, valued at $53,587,573.70. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Amirali Talasaz acquired 40,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 13th. The shares were bought at an average price of $25.66 per share, for a total transaction of $1,026,400.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 1,893,845 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,596,062.70. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 5.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on GH. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on Guardant Health from $70.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 6th. BTIG Research dropped their price objective on Guardant Health from $60.00 to $50.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 24th. Citigroup cut Guardant Health from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $60.00 to $33.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 9th. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their price objective on Guardant Health from $65.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 24th. Finally, Cowen lowered their target price on Guardant Health from $70.00 to $53.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $57.64.

Guardant Health Trading Up 5.5 %

The firm has a fifty day moving average of $29.55 and a two-hundred day moving average of $40.91. The company has a market cap of $2.90 billion, a PE ratio of -4.42 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a current ratio of 6.17, a quick ratio of 5.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 18.90.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Guardant Health

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GH. US Bancorp DE increased its holdings in Guardant Health by 5.2% in the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 12,808 shares of the company’s stock worth $849,000 after acquiring an additional 632 shares during the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Guardant Health in the 1st quarter worth about $385,000. Vontobel Holding Ltd. increased its holdings in Guardant Health by 20.3% in the 1st quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 16,548 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,109,000 after acquiring an additional 2,797 shares during the last quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP increased its holdings in Guardant Health by 36.0% in the 1st quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 143,041 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,475,000 after acquiring an additional 37,888 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in Guardant Health by 186.3% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 24,392 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,616,000 after acquiring an additional 15,873 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.43% of the company’s stock.

About Guardant Health

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Guardant Health, Inc is a precision oncology company engaged in the treatment of cancer through the use of proprietary blood-based tests, vast data sets, and advanced analytics. Its solutions include treatment selection, recurrence detection, and early detection. The company was founded by Helmy Eltoukhy, AmirAli H.