FARO Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:FARO) Short Interest Up 36.9% in May

FARO Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:FARO - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,520,000 shares, an increase of 36.9% from the April 30th total of 1,110,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 619,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.5 days. Currently, 8.2% of the company's stock are sold short.

FARO Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FARO traded down $0.03 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $42.47. The company had a trading volume of 400,062 shares, compared to its average volume of 299,833. The stock has a market cap of $816.53 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -121.25 and a beta of 1.49. FARO Technologies has a 12 month low of $13.52 and a 12 month high of $42.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.17 and a quick ratio of 1.83. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $33.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $30.09.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FARO has been the subject of several research reports. Needham & Company LLC lowered FARO Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Craig Hallum lowered FARO Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen initiated coverage on FARO Technologies in a research report on Friday, May 16th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company.

Insider Buying and Selling at FARO Technologies

In other FARO Technologies news, CFO Matthew Horwath sold 1,480 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.30, for a total transaction of $43,364.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 39,430 shares in the company, valued at $1,155,299. This trade represents a 3.62% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Peter James Lau sold 4,617 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.30, for a total value of $135,278.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 160,076 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,690,226.80. This represents a 2.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On FARO Technologies

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in FARO. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in FARO Technologies by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 54,069 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $1,371,000 after acquiring an additional 439 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted 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 worth $212,000 after acquiring an additional 966 shares during the period. Quarry LP acquired a new position in FARO Technologies during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its position in FARO Technologies by 50.5% during the 1st quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 3,262 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $89,000 after acquiring an additional 1,094 shares during the period. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in FARO Technologies by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 37,129 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $942,000 after acquiring an additional 1,314 shares during the period. 97.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

FARO Technologies Company Profile

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.