ASP Isotopes Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NASDAQ:ASPI)

ASP Isotopes Inc. (NASDAQ:ASPI) was the target of some unusual options trading on Tuesday. Traders acquired 17,032 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 76% compared to the average daily volume of 9,673 call options.

ASP Isotopes Trading Down 6.6%

Shares of ASPI traded down $0.68 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $9.67. The stock had a trading volume of 1,914,569 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,367,593. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $9.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $7.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.53, a quick ratio of 14.56 and a current ratio of 14.72. ASP Isotopes has a 12-month low of $2.61 and a 12-month high of $11.86. The firm has a market cap of $888.98 million, a P/E ratio of -15.98 and a beta of 3.35.

ASP Isotopes (NASDAQ:ASPI) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 14th. The company reported ($1.03) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.11) by ($0.92). ASP Isotopes had a negative return on equity of 239.22% and a negative net margin of 2,181.62%.The business had revenue of $1.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.60 million. Equities research analysts forecast that ASP Isotopes will post -0.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $11.00 target price on shares of ASP Isotopes in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $7.75.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Robert Ainscow sold 8,438 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.53, for a total transaction of $71,976.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 1,411,554 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,040,555.62. This represents a 0.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Paul Elliot Mann sold 81,077 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.39, for a total value of $680,236.03. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 8,084,191 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $67,826,362.49. This trade represents a 0.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 245,591 shares of company stock valued at $2,139,790. Insiders own 21.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of ASP Isotopes

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ASPI. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. increased its holdings in ASP Isotopes by 41.2% in the second quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 5,483 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 1,600 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in ASP Isotopes by 9.9% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 20,840 shares of the company’s stock valued at $153,000 after buying an additional 1,878 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can increased its holdings in ASP Isotopes by 8.0% in the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 27,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $199,000 after buying an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter. Rathbones Group PLC increased its holdings in ASP Isotopes by 1.1% in the second quarter. Rathbones Group PLC now owns 208,149 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,532,000 after buying an additional 2,220 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in ASP Isotopes by 84.9% in the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 5,549 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 2,548 shares during the last quarter. 16.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ASP Isotopes Company Profile

ASP Isotopes Inc, a development stage advanced materials company, focuses on the production, distribution, marketing, and sale of isotopes. It engages in the production and commercialization of Molybdenum-100, a non-radioactive isotope for the medical industry; Carbon-14; and Silicon-28. The company is also developing Quantum Enrichment technology to produce Ytterbium-176, Nickel-64, Lithium 6, Lithium7, and Uranium-235.