RBC Capital analyst changeOn August 3, RBC Capital reiterated their 1-year target of $US 13 (or $Cdn 16.37 approx). That was issued by Anton Hie.
Since then, Anton Hie has joined AdaptHealth as their VP of Finance.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/anton-hie-8544425/
It is a small world because AdaptHealth is in a similar space and, I hear, was at one time viewed as a potential suitor for VMD. AdaptHealth suffered major reputational loss when their former CEO was charged in Europe for tax issues. He resigned. I don't follow AdaptHealth but I heard that they had turnover of executive staff. Their revenue guidance for 2021 is $2.5 billion and their adjusted EBITA is $580 million. Perhaps Anton Hie has his sights set on VMD as a buyout possibility at his projected price plus or minus a premium. With 65% held by institutions, a buyout is possible given the cash on hand and failure of their IR efforts.
RBC Capital now lists Frank Morgan as the analyst for VMD at the same $US 13 price.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/frank-g-morgan-cfa-5895a87a/
Frank has an excellent reputation as an experienced analyst in the Healthcare Sector. In any event, I expect that he might revisit any inherited ratings from Anton Hie and perhaps reduce the rating so that it preserves his reputation. On the other hand, he may reasonably predict a near-term buyout and may want to take credit by continuing to recommend this target price.
Q3 revenue and earnings are a bit of an unknown. VMD was predicting a gradual return to normal in patient referrals. With the staff hirings, there will be some drag on the bottom line because not all staff will be performing at 100%.