nLIGHT, Inc. (NASDAQ:LASR) Short Interest Update

nLIGHT, Inc. (NASDAQ:LASR) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,230,000 shares, an increase of 17.1% from the January 15th total of 1,050,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 422,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.9 days.

Insider Transactions at nLIGHT

In other news, CFO Joseph John Corso sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.92, for a total value of $27,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 155,129 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,694,008.68. This trade represents a 1.59 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Scott H. Keeney sold 12,013 shares of nLIGHT stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.96, for a total value of $119,649.48. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,340,146 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,347,854.16. The trade was a 0.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 31,019 shares of company stock worth $331,365. Company insiders own 6.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of nLIGHT

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Deutsche Bank AG grew its stake in shares of nLIGHT by 65.2% in the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 38,157 shares of the company’s stock worth $400,000 after acquiring an additional 15,056 shares during the period. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in nLIGHT by 34.5% in the fourth quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 424,856 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,457,000 after purchasing an additional 109,075 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in nLIGHT by 72.0% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 209,644 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,199,000 after purchasing an additional 87,788 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in nLIGHT by 65.3% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 61,688 shares of the company’s stock valued at $647,000 after buying an additional 24,367 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Algert Global LLC lifted its holdings in shares of nLIGHT by 268.1% during the 4th quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 214,250 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,247,000 after buying an additional 156,043 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 83.88% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on LASR. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of nLIGHT from $17.00 to $14.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price target on nLIGHT from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st.

nLIGHT Stock Performance

Shares of LASR traded down $0.38 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $9.99. The company had a trading volume of 378,424 shares, compared to its average volume of 415,670. nLIGHT has a 52-week low of $9.15 and a 52-week high of $14.75. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $10.87 and a 200-day moving average price of $11.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $483.82 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.70 and a beta of 2.18.

About nLIGHT

nLIGHT, Inc designs, develops, manufactures, and sells semiconductor and fiber lasers for industrial, microfabrication, and aerospace and defense applications. The company operates in two segments, Laser Products and Advanced Development. It offers semiconductor lasers with various ranges of power levels, wavelengths, and output fiber sizes; and programmable and serviceable fiber lasers for use in industrial and aerospace and defense applications.