BNP Paribas Financial Markets Buys 7,419 Shares of FARO Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:FARO)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in FARO Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:FARO - Free Report) by 24.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 37,360 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after buying an additional 7,419 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets owned 0.20% of FARO Technologies worth $947,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of FARO Technologies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. National Bank of Canada FI acquired a new position in shares of FARO Technologies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Covestor Ltd acquired a new position in shares of FARO Technologies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $111,000. Aquatic Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in FARO Technologies during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $155,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in FARO Technologies by 13.1% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 8,345 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $212,000 after purchasing an additional 966 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.19% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Peter James Lau sold 4,617 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.30, for a total value of $135,278.10. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 160,076 shares in the company, valued at $4,690,226.80. This trade represents a 2.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Matthew Horwath sold 1,480 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.30, for a total value of $43,364.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 39,430 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,155,299. This represents a 3.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

FARO Technologies Trading Up 0.3%

NASDAQ:FARO traded up $0.11 on Tuesday, reaching $42.11. 456,478 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 287,455. The firm has a market capitalization of $809.61 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -120.31 and a beta of 1.49. The company's 50 day moving average is $31.82 and its 200-day moving average is $29.46. The company has a current ratio of 2.17, a quick ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. FARO Technologies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $13.52 and a 1-year high of $42.64.

FARO Technologies (NASDAQ:FARO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 24th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $93.54 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $91.40 million. FARO Technologies had a negative return on equity of 2.49% and a negative net margin of 1.87%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.36 EPS.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on FARO. Needham & Company LLC downgraded shares of FARO Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen began coverage on shares of FARO Technologies in a research report on Friday, May 16th. They set a "buy" rating for the company. Finally, Craig Hallum downgraded shares of FARO Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th.

About FARO Technologies

FARO Technologies, Inc designs, develops, manufactures, markets, and supports software driven three-dimensional measurement, imaging, and realization solutions worldwide. The company offers FaroArm, a combination of a portable articulated measurement arm, a computer, and CAM2 software programs; FARO Laser Tracker, a combination of a portable large-volume laser measurement tool, a computer, and CAM2 software programs; FARO Laser Projector, which provides a virtual template that operators and assemblers can use to position components; FARO Laser Scanning Portfolio to measure and collect a cloud of data points for 3D rendering of an object or area; and FARO Mobile Laser Portfolio provides 3D scanning while attached to other mobile devices, such as drones for metrology, reverse engineering, factory automation, building information modeling, public safety, and other applications.