Glaukos (NYSE:GKOS) Shares Gap Down After Earnings Miss

Glaukos Co. (NYSE:GKOS)’s share price gapped down before the market opened on Friday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $157.36, but opened at $141.35. Glaukos shares last traded at $139.40, with a volume of 991,896 shares.

The medical instruments supplier reported ($0.40) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.38) by ($0.02). Glaukos had a negative return on equity of 16.53% and a negative net margin of 39.04%. The company had revenue of $105.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $100.72 million.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price objective on shares of Glaukos from $149.00 to $176.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Glaukos from $153.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 31st. Citigroup upgraded shares of Glaukos from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $132.00 to $162.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Morgan Stanley lowered shares of Glaukos from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $120.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Glaukos from $153.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Glaukos presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $163.25.

Insider Buying and Selling at Glaukos

In other news, COO Joseph E. Gilliam sold 3,328 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.85, for a total transaction of $498,700.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 102,169 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,310,024.65. The trade was a 3.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Gilbert H. Kliman sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.28, for a total value of $1,502,800.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 32,336 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,859,454.08. This represents a 23.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 18,744 shares of company stock valued at $2,792,151 in the last three months. 6.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Glaukos

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. WCM Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Glaukos by 45.7% during the third quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 99,155 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $12,721,000 after buying an additional 31,084 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in Glaukos by 186.9% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 13,726 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $1,788,000 after purchasing an additional 8,942 shares during the last quarter. First Turn Management LLC purchased a new stake in Glaukos during the third quarter worth approximately $12,520,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Glaukos during the fourth quarter worth approximately $3,679,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Glaukos by 421.8% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 79,211 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $10,320,000 after purchasing an additional 64,031 shares during the last quarter. 99.04% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Glaukos Stock Performance

The firm has a 50 day moving average of $152.75 and a two-hundred day moving average of $139.41. The stock has a market cap of $6.95 billion, a PE ratio of -43.91 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 5.54 and a quick ratio of 4.71.

About Glaukos

Glaukos Corporation, an ophthalmic pharmaceutical and medical technology company, focuses on the development of novel therapies for the treatment of glaucoma, corneal disorders, and retinal diseases. It offers iStent and iStent inject W micro-bypass stents that enhance aqueous humor outflow inserted in cataract surgery to treat mild-to-moderate open-angle glaucoma.