Aspen Aerogels (NYSE:ASPN) Shares Up 10.8% – Here’s Why

Aspen Aerogels, Inc. (NYSE:ASPN) was up 10.8% during trading on Wednesday. The stock traded as high as $6.39 and last traded at $6.3360. Approximately 695,809 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 51% from the average session volume of 1,409,184 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.72.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ASPN has been the subject of several research reports. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Aspen Aerogels from $4.00 to $5.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. B. Riley Financial reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Aspen Aerogels in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Aspen Aerogels in a report on Monday, September 21st. Roth Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $7.75 target price on shares of Aspen Aerogels in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Aspen Aerogels from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 31st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Aspen Aerogels has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $6.25.

Aspen Aerogels Stock Up 12.0%

The firm has a market cap of $532.43 million, a P/E ratio of -4.05 and a beta of 3.06. The company has a quick ratio of 2.24, a current ratio of 2.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $5.26 and a 200-day moving average of $4.72.

Aspen Aerogels (NYSE:ASPN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The construction company reported $0.11 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.09) by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $85.18 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $72.07 million. Aspen Aerogels had a negative return on equity of 27.87% and a negative net margin of 60.81%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Aspen Aerogels, Inc. will post -0.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Wood River Capital, Llc sold 12,280,426 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.73, for a total transaction of $58,086,414.98. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 2.96% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Aspen Aerogels

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ieq Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Aspen Aerogels by 6.9% in the 3rd quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 110,440 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $605,000 after acquiring an additional 7,127 shares during the period. Focus Advisor Solutions LLC bought a new position in Aspen Aerogels during the third quarter worth about $57,000. Royce & Associates LP grew its holdings in Aspen Aerogels by 5.8% during the third quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,399,765 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $7,671,000 after purchasing an additional 76,547 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in Aspen Aerogels by 21.3% during the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 145,956 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $800,000 after buying an additional 25,650 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gagnon Securities LLC increased its position in Aspen Aerogels by 1.4% during the third quarter. Gagnon Securities LLC now owns 1,557,874 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $8,537,000 after buying an additional 22,062 shares during the last quarter. 97.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Aspen Aerogels

Aspen Aerogels, Inc. is an advanced materials company that develops, manufactures and sells aerogel-based products. Aerogels are highly porous materials used for thermal management, insulation and protection. The company serves customers in the energy, industrial, transportation and building materials markets. Its product portfolio includes thermal barriers designed to help protect electric vehicle batteries from thermal runaway, as well as insulation products for industrial, energy infrastructure and building applications.