Blend Labs, Inc. (NYSE:BLND) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Key Points

• Short Interest Increase: Blend Labs experienced a significant increase in short interest, rising by 45.5% in August, bringing the total to 11,220,000 shares, which is 5.7% of the company's shares sold short.
• Insider Selling: Insiders Nima Ghamsari and Brian Kneafsey sold substantial shares, reducing their stakes by 5.14% and 3.46%, respectively, with a total of 561,736 shares sold in the last quarter.
• Analyst Ratings: Analyst evaluations have resulted in a mix of ratings for Blend Labs, with a range of price targets from $3.50 to $7.00, indicating diverse expectations among analysts about the company's future performance.

Blend Labs, Inc. (NYSE:BLND - Get Free Report) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of August. As of August 15th, there was short interest totaling 11,220,000 shares, an increase of 45.5% from the July 31st total of 7,710,000 shares. Currently, 5.7% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 2,410,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.7 days. Based on an average daily volume of 2,410,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.7 days. Currently, 5.7% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Blend Labs from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, August 17th. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Blend Labs from $4.00 to $3.50 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of Blend Labs from $4.00 to $3.75 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 8th. JMP Securities restated a "market outperform" rating and set a $7.00 price objective on shares of Blend Labs in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $5.25 price objective on shares of Blend Labs in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Blend Labs has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $4.88.

Blend Labs Stock Performance

NYSE:BLND traded down $0.03 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $4.31. 2,822,484 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,511,358. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $3.49 and its 200 day simple moving average is $3.42. Blend Labs has a 1 year low of $2.63 and a 1 year high of $5.53.

Blend Labs (NYSE:BLND - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported ($0.03) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.02 by ($0.05). The business had revenue of $31.52 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $31.93 million. Blend Labs has set its Q3 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Blend Labs will post -0.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Blend Labs

In other news, insider Nima Ghamsari sold 311,886 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2.90, for a total value of $904,469.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 5,754,051 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,686,747.90. This represents a 5.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Brian Kneafsey sold 25,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2.87, for a total transaction of $71,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 696,598 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,999,236.26. The trade was a 3.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 441,886 shares of company stock valued at $1,334,169 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 35.52% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Blend Labs

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BLND. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Blend Labs during the fourth quarter worth about $132,000. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Blend Labs by 96.4% during the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 20,375 shares of the company's stock worth $86,000 after purchasing an additional 10,000 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Blend Labs by 75.2% during the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 48,414 shares of the company's stock worth $207,000 after purchasing an additional 20,780 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in shares of Blend Labs by 23.5% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 94,242 shares of the company's stock worth $397,000 after purchasing an additional 17,914 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Blend Labs by 16.2% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,212,460 shares of the company's stock worth $9,314,000 after purchasing an additional 309,067 shares during the last quarter. 52.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Blend Labs

Blend Labs, Inc engages in the provision of cloud-based software platform solutions for financial services firms in the United States. It operates in two segments, Blend Platform and Title365. The company's Blend Builder Platform offers a suite of products that powers digital-first consumer journeys for mortgages, home equity loans and lines of credit, vehicle loans, personal loans, credit cards, and deposit accounts; and offers mortgage products to facilitate the homeownership journey for consumers comprising close, income verification for mortgage, homeowners' insurance, and realty.