LightPath Technologies (NASDAQ:LPTH) Trading Up 10.5% – Time to Buy?

LightPath Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:LPTH)’s stock price was up 10.5% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $12.48 and last traded at $12.4240. Approximately 708,819 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 78% from the average daily volume of 3,193,545 shares. The stock had previously closed at $11.24.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on LPTH. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised LightPath Technologies to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of LightPath Technologies in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of LightPath Technologies from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 14th. Lake Street Capital boosted their target price on LightPath Technologies from $10.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group initiated coverage on LightPath Technologies in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. They set a “buy” rating and a $15.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, LightPath Technologies has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $12.10.

LightPath Technologies Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 3.97, a quick ratio of 3.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The company has a market cap of $692.51 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -23.08 and a beta of 0.97. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $10.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $8.22.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Run Strategic Opportunit North sold 770,321 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.72, for a total value of $9,028,162.12. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 2,728,968 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,983,504.96. This represents a 22.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 24.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On LightPath Technologies

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of LightPath Technologies by 915.6% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 312,267 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $3,372,000 after purchasing an additional 281,519 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of LightPath Technologies during the 4th quarter valued at $337,000. Boothbay Fund Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of LightPath Technologies during the fourth quarter worth $352,000. Apis Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in LightPath Technologies by 430.0% during the fourth quarter. Apis Capital Advisors LLC now owns 424,000 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $4,579,000 after purchasing an additional 344,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, 683 Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in LightPath Technologies in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,443,000. 56.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

LightPath Technologies Company Profile

LightPath Technologies, Inc designs, manufactures and distributes precision optical components and assemblies for a variety of commercial, industrial, defense and scientific applications. The company’s portfolio includes molded glass aspheric lenses, precision glass optics, infrared lenses and assemblies, diamond-turned optics and molded polymer optics. These components are engineered to support imaging, illumination, laser delivery, detection and sensing systems across visible, ultraviolet and infrared wavelengths.

Among its core offerings, LightPath develops infrared optical solutions using materials such as germanium, zinc selenide and chalcogenide glasses for thermal imaging, night-vision devices and spectroscopy.