Lightwave Logic (NASDAQ:LWLG) Stock Price Up 6.5% - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Lightwave Logic shares rose 6.5% to $5.325, though trading volume was 81% below the average session volume.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: Freedom Broker initiated coverage with a Buy rating and a $10 target, while Wall Street Zen and Weiss Ratings maintained negative views. The overall consensus is Hold with a $10 price target.
• The company continues to report weak financial results, including a quarterly loss of $0.04 per share, just $0.03 million in revenue, negative return on equity, and a heavily negative net margin.

Lightwave Logic Inc. (NASDAQ:LWLG - Get Free Report)'s share price rose 6.5% on Thursday. The company traded as high as $5.28 and last traded at $5.3250. 917,473 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 81% from the average session volume of 4,821,996 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.00.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Freedom Broker started coverage on shares of Lightwave Logic in a research note on Thursday, September 17th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $10.00 target price on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Lightwave Logic from a "sell" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Sunday, September 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (e+)" rating on shares of Lightwave Logic in a report on Friday, July 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $10.00.

Lightwave Logic Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $839.46 million, a P/E ratio of -34.09 and a beta of 2.41. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $5.98 and a 200-day moving average price of $8.65.

Lightwave Logic (NASDAQ:LWLG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 14th. The company reported ($0.04) earnings per share for the quarter. Lightwave Logic had a negative return on equity of 30.34% and a negative net margin of 9,143.60%.The company had revenue of $0.03 million during the quarter.

Institutional Trading of Lightwave Logic

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Lightwave Logic during the 2nd quarter worth $432,000. Engineers Gate Manager LP bought a new position in Lightwave Logic in the second quarter valued at $136,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC increased its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 10,818 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System purchased a new stake in Lightwave Logic during the second quarter valued at about $393,000. Finally, Wedmont Private Capital purchased a new stake in Lightwave Logic during the second quarter valued at about $203,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 27.04% of the company's stock.

Lightwave Logic Company Profile

Lightwave Logic, Inc develops advanced photonic materials and devices designed to improve the speed, energy efficiency and performance of optical communications systems. The company's core technology is based on electro-optic polymers, which can convert electrical signals into optical signals at high speeds.

Its product and technology portfolio includes proprietary organic nonlinear optical chromophores, polymer materials and polymer-based electro-optic modulators. These technologies are intended for applications such as data-center interconnects, telecommunications, high-performance computing and other systems that transmit large volumes of data using optical networks.

Founded in 1991 and headquartered in Englewood, Colorado, Lightwave Logic conducts research and development in the United States and works to support the adoption of its materials and devices through industry relationships and potential licensing or commercialization arrangements.

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