Traders sold shares of Cerner Corporation (NASDAQ:CERN) on strength during trading hours on Friday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. $29.94 million flowed into the stock on the tick-up and $47.77 million flowed out of the stock on the tick-down, for a money net flow of $17.83 million out of the stock. Of all equities tracked, Cerner Corporation had the 32nd highest net out-flow for the day. Cerner Corporation traded up $1.08 for the day and closed at $64.60The company reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $1.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.30 billion. Cerner Corporation had a return on equity of 18.18% and a net margin of 13.47%. The company’s revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.58 EPS.
Cerner Corporation declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, May 25th that allows the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 2.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.
Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. UBS AG reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $69.00 price objective (up previously from $64.00) on shares of Cerner Corporation in a research report on Tuesday, June 6th. Jefferies Group LLC set a $74.00 price objective on Cerner Corporation and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, April 30th. Bank of America Corporation upgraded Cerner Corporation from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $64.36 to $66.00 in a research report on Monday, May 15th. Barclays PLC reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $60.00 price objective on shares of Cerner Corporation in a research report on Monday, May 1st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $68.00 price objective (up previously from $66.00) on shares of Cerner Corporation in a research report on Thursday, April 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. The company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $64.94.
In other Cerner Corporation news, Director Gerald E. Bisbee, Jr. sold 6,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.97, for a total value of $421,414.00. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Vice Chairman Clifford W. Illig sold 234,525 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.43, for a total value of $15,110,445.75. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,229,719 shares in the company, valued at $79,230,795.17. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 408,325 shares of company stock worth $26,802,424. 13.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CERN. Johnson Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Cerner Corporation by 2.6% in the first quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,870 shares of the company’s stock valued at $110,000 after buying an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Alpha Windward LLC raised its position in Cerner Corporation by 6.1% in the first quarter. Alpha Windward LLC now owns 2,594 shares of the company’s stock valued at $153,000 after buying an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Archford Capital Strategies LLC raised its position in Cerner Corporation by 93.8% in the first quarter. Archford Capital Strategies LLC now owns 2,599 shares of the company’s stock valued at $153,000 after buying an additional 1,258 shares in the last quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. purchased a new position in Cerner Corporation during the first quarter valued at $200,000. Finally, Brookstone Capital Management purchased a new position in Cerner Corporation during the first quarter valued at $201,000. 81.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
The stock has a market cap of $21.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.03 and a beta of 0.95. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $65.92 and its 200-day moving average is $60.63.
Cerner Corporation Company Profile
Cerner Corporation (Cerner) is a supplier of healthcare information technology (HCIT). The Company offers a range of intelligent solutions and services that support the clinical, financial and operational needs of organizations of all sizes. The Company’s segments include Domestic and Global. The Domestic segment includes revenue contributions and expenditures associated with business activity in the United States.
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