Lightwave Logic (NASDAQ:LWLG) Stock Jumps 5.6% - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Lightwave Logic shares rose 5.6% to about $4.40, though trading volume was substantially below average. The stock remains well below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: ratings range from “strong sell” to “buy,” with an overall consensus rating of “Hold” and a $10.00 target price.
• The company continues to report weak fundamentals, including quarterly revenue of just $0.03 million, a $0.04-per-share loss, and a sharply negative net margin. Institutional investors own approximately 27% of the stock.

Shares of Lightwave Logic Inc. (NASDAQ:LWLG - Get Free Report) rose 5.6% on Wednesday. The stock traded as high as $4.37 and last traded at $4.3950. 336,438 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 93% from the average session volume of 4,758,514 shares. The stock had previously closed at $4.16.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on LWLG shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Lightwave Logic from a "sell" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Sunday, September 6th. Freedom Broker initiated coverage on shares of Lightwave Logic in a research report on Thursday, September 17th. They set a "buy" rating and a $10.00 target price for the company. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (e+)" rating on shares of Lightwave Logic in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Lightwave Logic to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lightwave Logic presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $10.00.

Lightwave Logic Stock Up 7.2%

The stock has a market capitalization of $687.28 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -27.72 and a beta of 2.40. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $5.41 and a 200-day simple moving average of $8.40.

Lightwave Logic (NASDAQ:LWLG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 14th. The company reported ($0.04) earnings per share for the quarter. The company had revenue of $0.03 million during the quarter. Lightwave Logic had a negative net margin of 9,143.60% and a negative return on equity of 30.34%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Lightwave Logic Inc. will post -0.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lightwave Logic

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Capstone Capital Management Ltd boosted its stake in Lightwave Logic by 17.1% during the 3rd quarter. Capstone Capital Management Ltd now owns 206,247 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,031,000 after purchasing an additional 30,085 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Lightwave Logic in the second quarter worth approximately $432,000. Engineers Gate Manager LP purchased a new stake in shares of Lightwave Logic in the second quarter worth approximately $136,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lightwave Logic by 5.7% in the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 200,704 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,899,000 after purchasing an additional 10,818 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System bought a new position in shares of Lightwave Logic in the second quarter valued at approximately $393,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.04% of the company's stock.

Lightwave Logic Company Profile

Lightwave Logic, Inc develops advanced electro-optic polymer materials and technologies designed to convert electrical signals into optical signals. Its technology is intended for use in photonic devices that support high-speed data transmission across communications and computing networks.

The company's offerings include its Perkinamine family of electro-optic chromophores and related organic polymer systems, as well as device designs and development expertise for polymer-based optical modulators.

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