William Blair Downgrades STAAR Surgical (NASDAQ:STAA) to Market Perform

STAAR Surgical (NASDAQ:STAA) was downgraded by research analysts at William Blair from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, Marketbeat.com reports.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on STAA. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their price target on shares of STAAR Surgical from $31.00 to $28.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of STAAR Surgical in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Stephens raised shares of STAAR Surgical to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $26.86.

STAAR Surgical Stock Down 3.2 %

NASDAQ:STAA opened at $15.96 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $786.51 million, a PE ratio of 36.27 and a beta of 0.62. STAAR Surgical has a 52 week low of $13.50 and a 52 week high of $52.68. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $23.57 and its 200-day moving average price is $29.15.

Insider Transactions at STAAR Surgical

In related news, major shareholder Broadwood Partners, L.P. purchased 23,000 shares of STAAR Surgical stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $24.33 per share, with a total value of $559,590.00. Following the purchase, the insider now owns 10,848,631 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $263,947,192.23. The trade was a 0.21 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders bought 105,876 shares of company stock worth $2,487,168 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of STAA. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI purchased a new position in STAAR Surgical during the 3rd quarter valued at about $37,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of STAAR Surgical in the third quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in STAAR Surgical during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $128,000. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in STAAR Surgical by 12.7% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,478 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $129,000 after buying an additional 393 shares in the last quarter. Finally, nVerses Capital LLC boosted its position in STAAR Surgical by 78.3% in the 3rd quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 4,100 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $152,000 after buying an additional 1,800 shares during the period. 96.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About STAAR Surgical

STAAR Surgical Company, together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, markets, and sells implantable lenses for the eye, and companion delivery systems to deliver the lenses into the eye. The company provides implantable Collamer lens product family (ICLs) to treat visual disorders, such as myopia, hyperopia, astigmatism, and presbyopia.