The Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC 1.59%) wasn't able to lead the market on Thursday, instead lagging behind. Even as other market benchmarks moved more aggressively upward, the Nasdaq was left with just a 0.3% gain at 2 p.m. EDT.
Yet that doesn't mean there wasn't some extremely good news among Nasdaq-listed stocks. Align Technology (ALGN 3.68%) mounted an incredible move higher, as its latest quarterly financial report gave shareholders in the orthodontic alignment specialist something to smile about. Meanwhile, Tesla (TSLA 1.85%) shares didn't manage to match Align's performance, but the stock still moved higher after the electric vehicle pioneer pointed to continuing favorable trends in its latest results.
Straightening up
Prices of Align Technology's stock soared upward by more than $110 per share, or 34%, at midday Thursday. That was enough to push the share price of the maker of Invisalign orthodontic devices up to a new all-time record high.
Image source: Getty Images.
Align's third-quarter results were a big part of the reason. Revenue climbed 21% year over year, with the number of lifetime Invisalign customers reaching the 9 million mark during the period. Adjusted net income climbed even more sharply, rising 50%.
A number of other favorable factors helped Align. Gross margin jumped 10 full percentage points from levels three months ago, and sales volumes of its clear aligners were up 29% to approach the 500,000 mark. In particular, Align was successful in getting more teens to choose its products, with case volumes rising 26% year over year in a key growth area for the company.
Separately, Align also announced its latest innovation. The Invisalign G8 now has SmartForce Aligner Activation features that incorporate more of the company's proprietary biomechanics knowledge into the product.
CEO Joe Hogan pointed to the work-from-home movement as a key factor in its growth, saying that those using videoconferencing have more time to look at their faces on-screen and consider whether they'd like orthodontic treatment. Regardless of the exact reasons, Align made just about everyone smile with its results.
Five-hundred thousand deliveries still doable
Elsewhere, Tesla saw a more modest move higher, with its stock rising more than 2%. The vehicle maker reported solid results in its third quarter and said it anticipates being able to meet its key delivery target for the full year.
Investors had already known going into Wednesday afternoon's report that the company had delivered 139,300 vehicles and produced more than 145,000. But missing from the early October vehicle-oriented report were revenue and profit figures.
Tesla's third-quarter revenue came in at $8.77 billion, up 39% from year-earlier levels. Automotive revenue jumped 42% to $7.61 billion. Adjusted net income of $874 million was higher by 156% compared to the year-earlier quarter, working out to $0.76 per share.
Moreover, Tesla's balance-sheet strength improved. Free cash flow rose to nearly $1.4 billion for the quarter, and the company boasts more than $14.5 billion in cash and cash equivalents available for internal investment.
Naysayers will point to the fact that the generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) net income of $331 million was less than the $397 million that Tesla got from sales of regulatory credits. That's been a recurring theme, and it partially explains why the automaker hasn't yet gotten invited to be part of the S&P 500 Index despite being profitable for five quarters in a row now.
Nevertheless, Tesla continued to make progress both with vehicle production and other initiatives. That's good news for investors in the automaker stock regardless of what the share price does in the near term.
