FARO Technologies (NASDAQ:FARO) Lowered to “Buy” Rating by StockNews.com

FARO Technologies (NASDAQ:FARO) was downgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report released on Sunday.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on the stock. Needham & Company LLC increased their price target on shares of FARO Technologies from $34.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Craig Hallum raised their target price on shares of FARO Technologies from $30.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th.

FARO Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of FARO Technologies stock opened at $29.43 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $558.64 million, a P/E ratio of -84.08 and a beta of 1.55. FARO Technologies has a 52 week low of $13.52 and a 52 week high of $33.13. The company has a quick ratio of 1.83, a current ratio of 2.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $29.56 and its two-hundred day moving average is $24.48.

FARO Technologies (NASDAQ:FARO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 24th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $93.54 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $91.40 million. FARO Technologies had a negative net margin of 1.87% and a negative return on equity of 2.49%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.36 earnings per share.

Insider Transactions at FARO Technologies

In related news, Director Yuval Wasserman sold 5,658 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.35, for a total transaction of $177,378.30. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 153,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,812,601.20. This trade represents a 3.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Matthew Horwath sold 1,480 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.30, for a total value of $43,364.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 39,430 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,155,299. This represents a 3.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 11,755 shares of company stock worth $356,020. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On FARO Technologies

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of FARO Technologies during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. National Bank of Canada FI acquired a new stake in shares of FARO Technologies during the fourth quarter worth $55,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of FARO Technologies during the fourth quarter worth $78,000. Covestor Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of FARO Technologies during the fourth quarter worth $111,000. Finally, Aquatic Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in FARO Technologies in the fourth quarter valued at $155,000. 97.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About FARO Technologies

FARO Technologies, Inc designs, develops, manufactures, markets, and supports software driven three-dimensional measurement, imaging, and realization solutions worldwide. The company offers FaroArm, a combination of a portable articulated measurement arm, a computer, and CAM2 software programs; FARO Laser Tracker, a combination of a portable large-volume laser measurement tool, a computer, and CAM2 software programs; FARO Laser Projector, which provides a virtual template that operators and assemblers can use to position components; FARO Laser Scanning Portfolio to measure and collect a cloud of data points for 3D rendering of an object or area; and FARO Mobile Laser Portfolio provides 3D scanning while attached to other mobile devices, such as drones for metrology, reverse engineering, factory automation, building information modeling, public safety, and other applications.