Stratasys (NASDAQ:SSYS) Shares Gap Down on Analyst Downgrade

Key Points

• Stratasys shares gapped down from $11.37 to $9.49 following a downgrade from Needham & Company, which lowered their price target from $15.00 to $13.00. The stock currently trades at $10.09.
• Despite the downgrade, Wall Street Zen recently upgraded Stratasys from a "hold" to a "buy" rating, contributing to an average consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a price target of $12.20.
• Institutional investors have been increasing their stakes in Stratasys, with notable stakes raised by Formidable Asset Management, HSBC Holdings, and others, indicating strong institutional interest in the company.

Shares of Stratasys, Ltd. (NASDAQ:SSYS - Get Free Report) gapped down before the market opened on Wednesday after Needham & Company LLC lowered their price target on the stock from $15.00 to $13.00. The stock had previously closed at $11.37, but opened at $9.49. Needham & Company LLC currently has a buy rating on the stock. Stratasys shares last traded at $10.09, with a volume of 1,285,175 shares trading hands.

Separately, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Stratasys from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $12.20.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SSYS. Formidable Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Stratasys by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Formidable Asset Management LLC now owns 24,545 shares of the technology company's stock worth $218,000 after buying an additional 965 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its stake in Stratasys by 10.4% in the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 16,664 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $148,000 after acquiring an additional 1,564 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its holdings in Stratasys by 4.3% during the second quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 53,023 shares of the technology company's stock worth $608,000 after purchasing an additional 2,172 shares in the last quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp raised its position in Stratasys by 9.4% during the second quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 28,000 shares of the technology company's stock worth $321,000 after acquiring an additional 2,400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its position in Stratasys by 28.0% during the second quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 13,670 shares of the technology company's stock worth $157,000 after buying an additional 2,991 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.77% of the company's stock.

Stratasys Stock Down 15.0%

The company has a 50 day moving average of $10.97 and a 200 day moving average of $10.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $820.75 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.42 and a beta of 1.57.

Stratasys (NASDAQ:SSYS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 13th. The technology company reported $0.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.03. The business had revenue of $138.09 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $137.15 million. Stratasys had a negative return on equity of 1.86% and a negative net margin of 19.02%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.04) earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Stratasys, Ltd. will post -0.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Stratasys

Stratasys Ltd. provides connected polymer-based 3D printing solutions. It offers range of 3D printing systems, which includes polyjet printer, Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) printers, stereolithography printing systems, origin P3 printers, and selective absorption fusion printer for additive manufacturing, and tooling and rapid prototyping for various vertical markets, such as automotive, aerospace, consumer products and healthcare.

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