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3 Reasons to Hold Inogen (INGN) Stock in Your Portfolio for Now

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Inogen, Inc. (INGN - Free Report) is well-poised for growth in the coming quarters, courtesy of its high prospects in the portable oxygen concentrator (POC) space. The optimism, led by solid third-quarter 2023 performance and a strong product portfolio, looks promising. However, issues like stiff competition and forex volatility are major downsides.

Over the past six months, the Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) stock has gained 49.9% compared with 8.6% growth of the industry.The S&P 500 rose 13.6% during the same time frame.

The renowned provider of POCs has a market capitalization of $218.9 million. The company projects 37.3% growth for 2024 and expects to witness continued improvements in its business. Inogen’s P/S ratio of 0.7 compares favorably with the industry’s 3.3.

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Let’s delve deeper.

High Prospects in the POC Space: We are optimistic about the POCs’ superiority over conventional oxygen therapy (known as the delivery model). Inogen primarily develops, manufactures and markets innovative POCs to deliver supplemental long-term oxygen therapy (LTOT) to patients suffering from chronic respiratory conditions. INGN’s proprietary Inogen One and Inogen Rove systems concentrate the air around the patient to offer a source of supplemental oxygen anytime, anywhere, with a battery that can be plugged into an outlet.

Product Portfolio: We are optimistic about Inogen’s expanding product portfolio. The company completed the acquisition of Physio-Assist SAS in September 2023. Following the close of the transaction, it owns Physio-Assist and will now market the Simeox device outside the United States.

On the third-quarter 2023 earnings call in November 2023, Inogen’s management confirmed that it secured the reimbursement approval for Rove 6 in France in August. It is currently focused on introducing Rove 6 to key customers in that market.

Strong Q3 Results:Inogen’s robust year-over-year uptick in rental revenues and international business-to-business sales in third-quarter 2023 buoy optimism. The expansion of the adjusted gross margin also looks promising.

Downsides

Stiff Competition: The LTOT market is a highly competitive industry. Inogen competes with several manufacturers and distributors of POC and providers of other LTOT solutions, such as home delivery of oxygen tanks or cylinders. Given the relatively straightforward regulatory path in the oxygen therapy device manufacturing market, Inogen expects the industry to become increasingly competitive in the future.

Forex Volatility: INGN generates a significant portion of its revenues from the International market. Management expects international revenues to remain lumpy, owing to the timing and size of the distributor.  We also expect adverse foreign currency exchange rates to impede revenue growth in the near term, owing to the strengthening of the U.S. dollar against euro and other foreign currencies.

Estimate Trend

Inogen has been witnessing a stable estimate revision trend for 2024. Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for its loss per share has remained unchanged at $2.47.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for first-quarter 2024 revenues is pegged at $80.8 million, implying an 11.9% improvement from the year-ago reported number.

Stocks to Consider

Some better-ranked stocks in the broader medical space that have announced quarterly results are Cencora, Inc. (COR - Free Report) , Elevance Health, Inc. (ELV - Free Report) and Cardinal Health, Inc. (CAH - Free Report) .

Cencora, carrying a Zacks Rank of 2 (Buy) at present, reported first-quarter fiscal 2024 adjusted EPS of $3.28, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 14.7%. Revenues of $72.25 billion outpaced the consensus mark by 5%. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Cencora has a long-term estimated growth rate of 8.6%. COR’s earnings surpassed estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, delivering an average surprise of 6.7%.

Elevance Health reported fourth-quarter 2023 adjusted EPS of $5.62, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1.3%. Revenues of $42.45 billion outpaced the consensus mark by 1.5%. ELV currently carries a Zacks Rank #2.

Elevance Health has a long-term estimated growth rate of 12%. Its earnings surpassed estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, delivering an average surprise of 3.1%.

Cardinal Health reported second-quarter fiscal 2024 adjusted EPS of $1.82, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 16.7%. Revenues of $57.45 billion surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1.1%. The company currently carries a Zacks Rank #2.

Cardinal Health has a long-term estimated growth rate of 15.9%. Its earnings surpassed estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, delivering an average surprise of 15.6%.

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