QuidelOrtho (NASDAQ:QDEL) Trading 9.3% Higher – Here’s What Happened

17 Mar 2026, 17:10 by Michael Walen · The Markets Daily

QuidelOrtho Corporation (NASDAQ:QDEL – Get Free Report) shares traded up 9.3% on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $19.12 and last traded at $19.2870. 121,906 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 90% from the average session volume of 1,191,388 shares. The stock had previously closed at $17.65.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Citigroup boosted their price objective on QuidelOrtho from $23.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. UBS Group set a $30.00 target price on shares of QuidelOrtho in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Zacks Research lowered shares of QuidelOrtho from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of QuidelOrtho in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, QuidelOrtho currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $31.50.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on QuidelOrtho

QuidelOrtho Trading Up 10.7%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $26.35 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $27.11. The stock has a market cap of $1.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.17 and a beta of 0.75.

QuidelOrtho (NASDAQ:QDEL – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by $0.03. QuidelOrtho had a positive return on equity of 5.91% and a negative net margin of 41.46%.The business had revenue of $723.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $699.80 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.63 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that QuidelOrtho Corporation will post 2.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at QuidelOrtho

In other QuidelOrtho news, CFO Joseph M. Busky acquired 3,370 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $23.66 per share, with a total value of $79,734.20. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 10,290 shares in the company, valued at approximately $243,461.40. The trade was a 48.70% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Brian J. Blaser bought 10,540 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 13th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $23.59 per share, for a total transaction of $248,638.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 40,073 shares in the company, valued at $945,322.07. This represents a 35.69% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders acquired 23,910 shares of company stock valued at $567,973. Corporate insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in QDEL. Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its holdings in QuidelOrtho by 3,691.7% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 910 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 886 shares during the last quarter. Camelot Portfolios LLC bought a new position in shares of QuidelOrtho during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC lifted its position in shares of QuidelOrtho by 100.6% during the third quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 989 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 496 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in QuidelOrtho by 50.3% during the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,082 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 362 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP grew its position in QuidelOrtho by 2,460.9% in the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,178 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 1,132 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.00% of the company’s stock.

QuidelOrtho Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

QuidelOrtho is a global diagnostics company formed through the merger of Quidel Corporation and Ortho Clinical Diagnostics. The combined entity develops, manufactures and markets a broad portfolio of rapid and high-throughput diagnostic solutions across immunoassay, molecular diagnostics and transfusion medicine. Its offerings span point-of-care platforms for acute care testing as well as large-scale automated systems designed for clinical laboratories and blood banks.