Franklin Resources Inc. Reduces Holdings in Guardant Health, Inc. (NASDAQ:GH)

Franklin Resources Inc. trimmed its stake in Guardant Health, Inc. (NASDAQ:GH) by 77.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 946,025 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,286,938 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 0.77% of Guardant Health worth $20,188,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of GH. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Guardant Health by 21.8% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 4,449 shares of the company’s stock worth $102,000 after purchasing an additional 796 shares during the last quarter. JNBA Financial Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of Guardant Health in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Wexford Capital LP increased its position in Guardant Health by 13.0% during the third quarter. Wexford Capital LP now owns 10,081 shares of the company’s stock worth $231,000 after buying an additional 1,158 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Guardant Health in the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Quarry LP purchased a new position in Guardant Health in the 2nd quarter valued at about $44,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.60% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Guardant Health

In related news, Director Meghan V. Joyce sold 2,896 shares of Guardant Health stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.90, for a total value of $86,590.40. Following the transaction, the director now owns 7,648 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $228,675.20. This trade represents a 27.47 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Musa Tariq sold 2,320 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.00, for a total value of $81,200.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 2,676 shares in the company, valued at approximately $93,660. The trade was a 46.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 5,432 shares of company stock valued at $175,423. 5.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Guardant Health Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ GH opened at $31.13 on Friday. Guardant Health, Inc. has a 12-month low of $15.81 and a 12-month high of $38.53. The company has a current ratio of 6.22, a quick ratio of 5.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.70. The company has a market cap of $3.85 billion, a PE ratio of -7.34 and a beta of 1.26. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $28.71 and a 200-day simple moving average of $28.30.

Guardant Health (NASDAQ:GH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported ($0.88) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.55) by ($0.33). Guardant Health had a negative net margin of 74.02% and a negative return on equity of 1,200.44%. The company had revenue of $191.48 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $170.49 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.73) earnings per share. Guardant Health’s revenue for the quarter was up 33.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Guardant Health, Inc. will post -3.44 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GH has been the subject of several analyst reports. Leerink Partners cut their price target on Guardant Health from $60.00 to $50.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Guardant Health from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their target price on Guardant Health from $40.00 to $35.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Guardant Health from $32.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $40.60.

Guardant Health Company Profile

Guardant Health, Inc, a precision oncology company, provides blood and tissue tests, data sets, and analytics in the United States and internationally. The company provides Guardant360; Guardant360 LDT; Guardant360 CDx Test; Guardant360 Response Test; Guardant360 TissueNext Test; GuardantINFINITY Test; GuardantConnect, an integrated software-based solution designed for clinical and biopharmaceutical customers to connect patients tested with assays with actionable alterations with potentially relevant clinical studies; GuardantOMNI Test for advanced stage cancer; and GuardantINFORM, an in-silico research platform for tumor evolution and treatment resistance across various biomarker-driven cancers.