Allscripts Healthcare (MDRX) To Repurchase $200M Share

Allscripts Healthcare Solutions (NASDAQ:MDRX) announced that its board of directors has approved a new stock repurchase program. Per the program, the company may purchase up to $200 million of its common stock through Dec 31, 2019. Allscripts could repurchase approximately 18.4 million additional shares or approximately 10% of the company's outstanding shares as of Oct 30, 2016 based on the Nov 17, 2016 closing price.

This repurchase program would replace the previously existing stock repurchase program, which authorized Allscripts to repurchase $150 million of its common stock through Dec 31, 2018. Under the prior program, the company repurchased 8.1 million shares or approximately $97 million of shares of common stock.

As of Sep 30, 2016, the company had total cash and cash investments worth $77.3 million compared with $116.9 million as of Dec 31, 2015. During the nine-month period ended Sep 30, 2016, the company generated $185 million in cash from operations, marking a 44% increase year over year.

Allscripts Healthcare is a leading provider of healthcare information technology solutions. The company is progressing well with its Sunrise and CareInMotion platforms. During the last-reported third quarter of 2016, the company expanded its client base. As a result, it recorded strong growth in bookings, primarily attributable to new clients.

Going forward, we believe that the new clients will help Allscripts Healthcare’s platforms gain better market traction, which will lead to increased business. It has been a story of constant achievements for Allscripts Healthcare’s platforms. From winning industry recognition to fetching new clients, the platforms have indeed lived up to expectations and have helped the company grow over time.

Zacks Rank & Key Picks

Currently, Allscripts has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Better-ranked stocks in the broader medical space include Cogentix Medical, Inc. (NASDAQ:CGNT) , CryoLife Inc. (NYSE:CRY) and IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:IDXX) , all of which sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Cogentix Medical registered a positive earnings surprise of 100% in the last reported quarter. Notably, the company has a solid one-year return of roughly 76.4%.

CryoLife has a stellar one-year return of roughly 86.9%. In the last reported quarter, the company registered an impressive earnings surprise of 225%.

IDEXX Laboratories represents a solid one-year return of almost 66.8%. The company has a long-term expected growth rate of almost 14.96%.

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