Novanta (NASDAQ:NOVT) CFO Robert Buckley Sells 1,423 Shares

24 Feb 2026, 22:38 by Tristan Rich · The Markets Daily

Novanta Inc. (NASDAQ:NOVT – Get Free Report) CFO Robert Buckley sold 1,423 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.88, for a total value of $200,472.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 93,814 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,216,516.32. The trade was a 1.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Robert Buckley also recently made the following trade(s):

On Wednesday, January 21st, Robert Buckley sold 1,423 shares of Novanta stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.14, for a total value of $199,419.22.

Novanta Price Performance

NOVT stock traded down $4.94 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $137.44. 529,253 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 452,701. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $132.15 and a 200-day moving average price of $119.89. Novanta Inc. has a 52-week low of $98.27 and a 52-week high of $153.20. The company has a market capitalization of $4.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 93.50 and a beta of 1.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.54.

Novanta (NASDAQ:NOVT – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 23rd. The technology company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.03. Novanta had a net margin of 5.50% and a return on equity of 14.53%. The company had revenue of $258.35 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $260.72 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.76 earnings per share. Novanta has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.500-3.650 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.750-0.800 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Novanta Inc. will post 3.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Trending Headlines about Novanta

Here are the key news stories impacting Novanta this week:

Positive Sentiment: Q4 EPS beat consensus: Novanta reported $0.91 EPS vs. $0.88 expected, showing profitability improvement year-over-year and supporting the stock’s recent momentum. MarketBeat Q4 Results
Positive Sentiment: Revenue and net income rose YoY: Q4 revenue was $258.3M (up ~8.5% YoY) and net income increased, reflecting continued top-line growth in Novanta’s end markets. Business Wire Release
Neutral Sentiment: FY‑2026 guidance roughly in line: Novanta set FY26 EPS guidance of $3.50–$3.65 (consensus ~3.61), so the annual outlook largely overlaps street expectations even though the midpoint is slightly below. Yahoo Finance Valuation Take
Neutral Sentiment: Analyst/preview coverage and commentary are active: several articles reviewed what to watch in the print and provided valuation context for recent share price momentum. Useful for investors re‑assessing expectations. MSN Preview
Negative Sentiment: Q1 guidance missed: management guided Q1 FY26 EPS to $0.75–$0.80 vs. the street at ~$0.85, and revenue guidance $250–$255M (vs. ~$253M consensus) — softer near-term outlook pressured the stock. Stamford Advocate Snapshot
Negative Sentiment: Weak operating cash flow and margin pressure flagged: third‑party reporting highlighted a sharp drop in cash from operations (large YoY decline) and some operating-profit contraction, which raises near-term free‑cash‑flow concerns. QuiverQuant Report
Negative Sentiment: Insider selling and mixed institutional flows: filings show several insider sales in recent months and notable portfolio adjustments among institutions, which can sap investor confidence even with solid fundamentals. QuiverQuant Insider/Institutional Data

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Novanta

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its position in Novanta by 75.9% during the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,399,462 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $155,536,000 after buying an additional 604,055 shares during the period. Congress Asset Management Co. purchased a new position in shares of Novanta in the third quarter worth about $59,153,000. GW&K Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Novanta by 187.3% in the 4th quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 736,954 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $87,691,000 after acquiring an additional 480,413 shares during the last quarter. Sculptor Capital LP purchased a new stake in Novanta during the 4th quarter valued at about $51,265,000. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Novanta during the 4th quarter valued at about $50,719,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.35% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on NOVT. Zacks Research raised shares of Novanta from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Novanta from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $133.00.

Check Out Our Latest Report on NOVT

Novanta Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Novanta, Inc (NASDAQ: NOVT) is a global technology company that designs and manufactures precision components, subsystems and software used in advanced photonics and motion control applications. The company serves customers in the medical device and advanced industrial markets, supplying critical technologies for diagnostics and therapeutic systems, semiconductor and electronics manufacturing, and scientific instrumentation. Novanta’s product portfolio includes laser control modules, optics, beam delivery systems, high-precision motors, actuators, stages, and fluidics solutions designed to meet stringent accuracy and reliability requirements.