Stratasys Ltd. (NASDAQ:SSYS) Sees Large Drop in Short Interest

Stratasys Ltd. (NASDAQ:SSYS) saw a large decline in short interest during the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,460,000 shares, a decline of 29.5% from the August 31st total of 2,070,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 525,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.8 days. Approximately 2.6% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Stratasys Price Performance

SSYS traded up $0.15 during trading on Friday, hitting $8.14. The stock had a trading volume of 602,869 shares, compared to its average volume of 490,340. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $7.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $9.00. Stratasys has a one year low of $6.05 and a one year high of $14.93. The firm has a market cap of $567.03 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.45 and a beta of 1.18.

Stratasys (NASDAQ:SSYS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 29th. The technology company reported ($0.04) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.05) by $0.01. The business had revenue of $138.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $146.38 million. Stratasys had a negative net margin of 18.98% and a negative return on equity of 3.29%. Stratasys’s revenue was down 13.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($0.08) earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Stratasys will post -0.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Stratasys in a research report on Monday, September 2nd. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald cut their target price on shares of Stratasys from $23.00 to $12.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 30th. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price target on shares of Stratasys from $12.00 to $10.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 30th. Loop Capital dropped their target price on shares of Stratasys from $9.00 to $7.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Finally, Craig Hallum lowered their price objective on shares of Stratasys from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $10.80.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Stratasys

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Stratasys in the 1st quarter worth about $61,000. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Stratasys by 2,711.2% in the first quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 9,558 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $111,000 after acquiring an additional 9,218 shares during the last quarter. Values First Advisors Inc. increased its position in Stratasys by 51.3% during the 2nd quarter. Values First Advisors Inc. now owns 33,175 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $278,000 after purchasing an additional 11,254 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL raised its holdings in Stratasys by 4.0% during the 1st quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 48,659 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $565,000 after purchasing an additional 1,850 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Stratasys in the 1st quarter worth approximately $598,000. Institutional investors own 75.77% of the company’s stock.

About Stratasys

Stratasys Ltd. provides connected polymer-based 3D printing solutions. It offers range of 3D printing systems, which includes polyjet printer, Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) printers, stereolithography printing systems, origin P3 printers, and selective absorption fusion printer for additive manufacturing, and tooling and rapid prototyping for various vertical markets, such as automotive, aerospace, consumer products and healthcare.