Aspen Aerogels (NYSE:ASPN) Trading Up 8.1% - Here's What Happened

Shares of Aspen Aerogels, Inc. (NYSE:ASPN - Get Free Report) shot up 8.1% on Friday . The stock traded as high as $7.17 and last traded at $7.20. 609,945 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 70% from the average session volume of 2,024,653 shares. The stock had previously closed at $6.66.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on ASPN. Barclays restated an "equal weight" rating and set a $7.00 target price (down previously from $13.00) on shares of Aspen Aerogels in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Oppenheimer downgraded shares of Aspen Aerogels from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $18.44.

Aspen Aerogels Trading Up 2.3%

The company has a quick ratio of 3.53, a current ratio of 4.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $6.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $7.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $607.20 million, a P/E ratio of -2.12 and a beta of 2.65.

Aspen Aerogels (NYSE:ASPN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The construction company reported ($0.06) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.07) by $0.01. Aspen Aerogels had a positive return on equity of 6.69% and a negative net margin of 65.47%. The business had revenue of $78.72 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $82.75 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.02) earnings per share. The company's revenue was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Aspen Aerogels, Inc. will post 0.17 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Aspen Aerogels

In related news, CEO Donald R. Young purchased 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The shares were bought at an average price of $5.35 per share, with a total value of $107,000.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 550,856 shares in the company, valued at $2,947,079.60. This trade represents a 3.77% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 3.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Aspen Aerogels by 7.9% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 549,709 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $6,531,000 after buying an additional 40,279 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Aspen Aerogels during the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,909,000. Swiss National Bank increased its holdings in shares of Aspen Aerogels by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 128,800 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,530,000 after acquiring an additional 2,400 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC grew its position in Aspen Aerogels by 45.9% in the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 22,192 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $264,000 after buying an additional 6,982 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Aspen Aerogels by 57.4% during the 4th quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 28,267 shares of the construction company's stock worth $336,000 after buying an additional 10,311 shares in the last quarter. 97.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Aspen Aerogels Company Profile

Aspen Aerogels, Inc designs, develops, manufactures, and sells aerogel insulation products primarily for use in the energy infrastructure and sustainable insulation materials markets in the United States, Asia, Canada, Europe, and Latin America. It operates in two segments, Energy Industrial and Thermal Barrier.