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Cerner (CERN) Banks on RCM & PH Platforms, Competition Rife

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On Aug 21, we issued an updated research report on North Kansas City, MO-based Cerner Corporation – a leading global provider of healthcare information technology solutions (HCIT). The stock currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

We believe that Cerner has solid growth opportunities in the revenue cycle management (RCM) suite of solutions. In fact, the segment has been a strong contributor in recent times with RevWorks services delivering a solid performance. In fact, bookings in the second quarter of 2017 were $1.636 billion (an all-time high), up 16% on a year-over-year basis.

A secondary growth driver for Cerner is its Population Health (PH) Management platform. Notably, the company clinched a high number of large contracts for the PH platform in the last reported quarter.

Cerner offers exposure to worldwide healthcare automation. Its international operations provide a more diversified revenue stream. In the past, the company had won contracts in the U.K. as well as the Middle East. Furthermore, Cerner constantly pursues complementary business acquisitions that enable it to expand its solutions, device offerings and services.

On the flipside, the company operates in the HCIT space which is intensely competitive and fast evolving, subjecting it to rapid technological changes.

Share Price & Estimate Revision

Cerner had an impressive run on the bourse over the last six months, trading above the industry in terms of price performance. A glimpse at the price movement reveals that Cerner’s shares have gained 17.2%, comparing favorably with the 14.1% rise of the industry it belongs to.

On the flip side, the estimate revision trend for the current year remains unfavorable with eight estimates moving south over the last two months, compared with only two movement in the opposite direction. The company’s current estimate slipped 0.4% over the past two months.

Key Picks

A few better-ranked medical stocks are IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. (IDXX - Free Report) , Lantheus Holdings, Inc. and Align Technology, Inc. (ALGN - Free Report) . While Align Technology sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), Lantheus Holdings and IDEXX Laboratories carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

IDEXX Laboratories has a long-term expected earnings growth rate of 19.8%. The stock has gained around 6.8% over the last six months.

Lantheus Holdings has a long-term expected earnings growth rate of 12.5%. The stock has surged 70.4% over the last six months.

Align Technology has a long-term expected earnings growth rate of 26.6%. The stock has rallied roughly 22.3% over the last three months.

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