Intuitive Machines (NASDAQ:LUNR) Shares Gap Down – Here’s Why

Intuitive Machines, Inc. (NASDAQ:LUNR) shares gapped down prior to trading on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $17.55, but opened at $16.83. Intuitive Machines shares last traded at $18.0280, with a volume of 1,064,133 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on LUNR. Roth Mkm reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Intuitive Machines in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on Intuitive Machines from $15.50 to $22.50 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. B. Riley Financial reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Intuitive Machines in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $20.00 price target on shares of Intuitive Machines and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on Intuitive Machines from $8.50 to $9.50 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $17.27.

Intuitive Machines Stock Performance

The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $17.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $12.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.26 and a beta of 1.37.

Insider Transactions at Intuitive Machines

In other news, CEO Stephen J. Altemus sold 1,958,593 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.77, for a total value of $30,887,011.61. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,026,402 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,186,359.54. This represents a 65.61% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Timothy Price Crain II sold 200,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.04, for a total transaction of $3,208,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 298,435 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,786,897.40. This trade represents a 40.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 3,689,913 shares of company stock worth $62,240,781 over the last ninety days. 39.75% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Intuitive Machines

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. LBP AM SA increased its holdings in shares of Intuitive Machines by 87.2% in the 3rd quarter. LBP AM SA now owns 256,417 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,698,000 after purchasing an additional 119,419 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Intuitive Machines by 36.4% in the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 486,752 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,121,000 after acquiring an additional 129,896 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Intuitive Machines in the 3rd quarter valued at about $3,134,000. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc acquired a new stake in Intuitive Machines during the second quarter worth approximately $373,000. Finally, Voya Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Intuitive Machines by 56.1% during the third quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 2,656,684 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,948,000 after purchasing an additional 954,778 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.21% of the company’s stock.

Intuitive Machines Company Profile

Intuitive Machines is a Houston, Texas–based aerospace company specializing in commercial lunar exploration and services. The firm develops end-to-end solutions for robotic missions to the Moon, providing spacecraft design, mission management, navigation, communications, and data services under NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program.

Founded in 2013 by aerospace engineers Steve Altemus, Tim Crain and Kris Kimel, Intuitive Machines has grown from a small startup into one of the leading private entities pursuing lunar surface deliveries.