Ouster (NASDAQ:OUST) Shares Up 9.5% - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Ouster shares jumped 9.5% in Thursday trading, reaching as high as $48.25 on heavier-than-normal volume. The move brought the stock close to its recent analyst average price target of $48.17.
• Analyst opinions on Ouster remain mixed, with recent ratings ranging from Sell to Buy. Rosenblatt and Roth Capital were bullish, while Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded the stock; the overall consensus is currently Hold.
• The company continues to post losses despite revenue above expectations in its latest earnings report. Ouster also saw notable insider selling over the past 90 days, including sales by both the COO and CEO.

Ouster, Inc. (NASDAQ:OUST - Get Free Report) shares rose 9.5% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $48.25 and last traded at $47.53. 4,434,960 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 35% from the average daily volume of 3,276,744 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.41.

Analyst Ratings Changes

OUST has been the topic of a number of research reports. Weiss Ratings initiated coverage on shares of Ouster in a report on Friday, May 15th. They issued a "sell (d-)" rating on the stock. Rosenblatt Securities raised their target price on shares of Ouster from $40.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered shares of Ouster from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Roth Capital began coverage on Ouster in a report on Friday, May 29th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $75.00 price target on the stock. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ouster currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $48.17.

Ouster Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $2.99 billion, a PE ratio of -49.00 and a beta of 3.17. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $39.83 and a 200 day moving average price of $28.35.

Ouster (NASDAQ:OUST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported ($0.28) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.12) by ($0.16). The company had revenue of $48.58 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $46.15 million. Ouster had a negative return on equity of 21.49% and a negative net margin of 30.12%.During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($0.42) EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Ouster, Inc. will post -1.05 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Ouster news, COO Darien Spencer sold 30,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.00, for a total transaction of $1,350,000.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 342,366 shares of the company's stock, valued at $15,406,470. The trade was a 8.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Charles Angus Pacala sold 29,797 shares of Ouster stock in a transaction on Friday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.82, for a total value of $1,156,719.54. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,072,201 shares in the company, valued at $41,622,842.82. This represents a 2.70% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 910,591 shares of company stock worth $32,578,780. Company insiders own 5.72% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Ouster

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in Ouster by 43.2% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 276,578 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,985,000 after buying an additional 83,448 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in Ouster by 514.6% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 185,198 shares of the company's stock worth $5,010,000 after buying an additional 155,063 shares in the last quarter. Algert Global LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ouster by 192.6% during the 3rd quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 500,902 shares of the company's stock valued at $13,549,000 after buying an additional 329,735 shares during the period. UBS Group AG boosted its stake in shares of Ouster by 67.7% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 301,469 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,524,000 after buying an additional 121,708 shares during the period. Finally, Patten Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ouster during the 1st quarter valued at $212,000. 31.45% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ouster Company Profile

Ouster, Inc is a leading provider of high-resolution digital lidar sensors, software and services designed to enable advanced perception capabilities across a range of industries. Headquartered in San Francisco, California, the company develops modular lidar solutions that capture precise three-dimensional data in real time, supporting applications from autonomous vehicles and robotics to mapping, smart infrastructure and industrial automation.

The company’s core product lineup features multi-beam digital lidar units available in various form factors, including compact models for robotics and drones and larger units for automotive and mapping systems.

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