3D Systems (NYSE:DDD) Trading 8.1% Higher – Still a Buy?

3D Systems Co. (NYSE:DDD)’s stock price rose 8.1% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $4.65 and last traded at $4.63. Approximately 1,426,100 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 51% from the average daily volume of 2,902,342 shares. The stock had previously closed at $4.28.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DDD has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of 3D Systems in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of 3D Systems in a research report on Saturday, February 1st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of 3D Systems from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 28th. Finally, Craig Hallum upgraded shares of 3D Systems to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, 3D Systems has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $3.25.

3D Systems Price Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $3.64 and its 200-day moving average price is $3.09. The company has a market capitalization of $635.38 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.18 and a beta of 1.63. The company has a quick ratio of 2.34, a current ratio of 3.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97.

3D Systems (NYSE:DDD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 26th. The 3D printing company reported ($0.16) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.14) by ($0.02). 3D Systems had a negative net margin of 117.65% and a negative return on equity of 26.72%. Equities research analysts anticipate that 3D Systems Co. will post -0.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Charles W. Hull sold 115,971 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.86, for a total transaction of $447,648.06. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 331,955 shares in the company, valued at $1,281,346.30. This trade represents a 25.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jeffrey A. Graves acquired 60,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were bought at an average price of $3.85 per share, for a total transaction of $231,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 1,091,782 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,203,360.70. This trade represents a 5.82 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On 3D Systems

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Point72 DIFC Ltd acquired a new stake in 3D Systems in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Murchinson Ltd. acquired a new stake in 3D Systems in the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. HighTower Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in 3D Systems in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in 3D Systems by 411.6% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 10,006 shares of the 3D printing company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 8,050 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ballentine Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of 3D Systems in the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. 64.49% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

3D Systems Company Profile

3D Systems Corporation provides 3D printing and digital manufacturing solutions in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. The company offers 3D printers technologies, such as stereolithography, selective laser sintering, direct metal printing, multi jet printing, color jet printing, polymer extrusion, and extrusion and SLA based bioprinting that transform digital data input generated by 3D design software, computer aided design (CAD) software, or other 3D design tools into printed parts.