Sol-Gel Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ:SLGL) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Sol-Gel Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ:SLGL) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest during the month of May. As of May 29th, there was short interest totaling 53,063 shares, an increase of 111.8% from the May 14th total of 25,059 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 45,645 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.2 days. Approximately 5.6% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, major shareholder Opaleye Management Inc. acquired 1,937 shares of Sol-Gel Technologies stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $66.87 per share, with a total value of $129,527.19. Following the purchase, the insider owned 488,437 shares in the company, valued at $32,661,782.19. This trade represents a 0.40% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 66.51% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sol-Gel Technologies

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SLGL. Yelin Lapidot Holdings Management Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Sol-Gel Technologies during the 4th quarter worth $748,000. Affinity Asset Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sol-Gel Technologies during the 1st quarter worth $2,773,000. Finally, Opaleye Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Sol-Gel Technologies by 121.5% during the 4th quarter. Opaleye Management Inc. now owns 453,739 shares of the company’s stock worth $19,121,000 after purchasing an additional 248,904 shares during the period. 26.18% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sol-Gel Technologies Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of SLGL traded up $0.09 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $73.53. The company had a trading volume of 1,287 shares, compared to its average volume of 35,012. Sol-Gel Technologies has a 1-year low of $6.91 and a 1-year high of $97.97. The stock has a market cap of $206.61 million, a PE ratio of -216.44 and a beta of 1.13. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $73.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $66.55.

Sol-Gel Technologies (NASDAQ:SLGL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 28th. The company reported ($1.31) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($2.86) by $1.55. The business had revenue of $0.11 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $0.90 million. Sol-Gel Technologies had a negative return on equity of 3.17% and a negative net margin of 5.66%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Sol-Gel Technologies will post -8.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Lifesci Capital raised Sol-Gel Technologies to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Sol-Gel Technologies from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Sol-Gel Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 16th. Finally, TD Cowen assumed coverage on Sol-Gel Technologies in a research note on Friday, May 29th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $110.00.

About Sol-Gel Technologies

Sol-Gel Technologies, Inc (NASDAQ: SLGL) is a U.S.-based advanced materials company specializing in the development and commercialization of nanostructured materials using proprietary sol-gel processes. Leveraging expertise in materials chemistry and thin-film deposition, the company focuses on the production of metal oxide powders, sols, coatings and functional inks designed to enhance performance in a variety of industrial and commercial applications.

The company’s product portfolio includes corrosion- and abrasion-resistant coatings, dielectric and conductive films, catalyst supports and specialty fillers.