Standard BioTools Inc. (NASDAQ:LAB) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Key Points

• Short interest jumped 24.6% in March to 10,319,954 shares (about 3.4% of shares outstanding), producing a days-to-cover ratio of roughly 5.6 days.
• Several institutional investors materially increased positions—Casdin Capital added 11.225M shares to hold 88,783,856, Mak Capital One added 10.334M, and hedge funds now own about 53.74% of the company.
• Shares traded down to $0.92 (down 5.6%) with a market cap near $360M; the company beat quarterly EPS and revenue estimates but remains unprofitable, and analysts hold a consensus "Reduce" rating with an average target of $1.35.

Standard BioTools Inc. (NASDAQ:LAB - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 10,319,954 shares, an increase of 24.6% from the March 15th total of 8,281,198 shares. Currently, 3.4% of the company's shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 1,846,849 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 5.6 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Standard BioTools

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LAB. Casdin Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Standard BioTools by 14.5% during the fourth quarter. Casdin Capital LLC now owns 88,783,856 shares of the company's stock valued at $113,643,000 after buying an additional 11,225,000 shares during the period. Mak Capital One LLC increased its stake in shares of Standard BioTools by 184.6% during the third quarter. Mak Capital One LLC now owns 15,931,806 shares of the company's stock valued at $20,711,000 after buying an additional 10,334,384 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Standard BioTools by 133.0% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 3,387,428 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,336,000 after buying an additional 1,933,853 shares during the period. Long Focus Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Standard BioTools by 12.8% during the third quarter. Long Focus Capital Management LLC now owns 11,362,804 shares of the company's stock valued at $14,772,000 after buying an additional 1,292,804 shares during the period. Finally, Kent Lake PR LLC purchased a new position in shares of Standard BioTools during the second quarter valued at $1,200,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 53.74% of the company's stock.

Standard BioTools Stock Down 5.6%

LAB traded down $0.05 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $0.92. 2,483,752 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,134,609. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $1.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $1.25. Standard BioTools has a 52-week low of $0.87 and a 52-week high of $1.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $360.04 million, a PE ratio of -4.61 and a beta of 1.42.

Standard BioTools (NASDAQ:LAB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 24th. The company reported $0.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.03) by $0.08. Standard BioTools had a negative return on equity of 11.21% and a negative net margin of 59.39%.The company had revenue of $23.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $18.50 million. Equities analysts predict that Standard BioTools will post -0.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on LAB shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Standard BioTools in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Standard BioTools from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, March 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $1.35.

About Standard BioTools

Standard BioTools, Inc NASDAQ: LAB, formerly known as Fluidigm Corporation, is a life sciences tools company that develops and commercializes high-parameter, single-cell and spatial biology solutions. The company’s platforms integrate microfluidics, mass cytometry, sequencing and imaging to enable researchers to probe cellular heterogeneity, molecular interactions and complex tissue architecture. Its end users span academic institutions, pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies worldwide.

The company’s flagship products include mass cytometry systems—such as the Helios and Hyperion Imaging System—for multiplexed protein analysis at single-cell resolution, and the Chromium-style single-cell genomic tools for high-throughput gene expression profiling.

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