Aspen Aerogels, Inc. (NYSE:ASPN) Shares Purchased by Essex Investment Management Co. LLC

Essex Investment Management Co. LLC raised its holdings in Aspen Aerogels, Inc. (NYSE:ASPN) by 15.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 248,243 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 32,476 shares during the period. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC’s holdings in Aspen Aerogels were worth $2,949,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aspen Aerogels during the 3rd quarter worth $10,126,000. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. boosted its position in Aspen Aerogels by 167.2% in the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 102,535 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,839,000 after buying an additional 64,154 shares during the last quarter. Sanders Morris Harris LLC boosted its position in Aspen Aerogels by 337.5% in the 4th quarter. Sanders Morris Harris LLC now owns 35,000 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $436,000 after buying an additional 27,000 shares during the last quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Aspen Aerogels in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,342,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Aspen Aerogels by 5.7% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,385,968 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $38,385,000 after purchasing an additional 75,024 shares in the last quarter. 97.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Aspen Aerogels Price Performance

Shares of ASPN opened at $7.91 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $648.76 million, a PE ratio of 49.42 and a beta of 2.28. The company’s 50-day moving average is $10.70 and its 200-day moving average is $16.85. Aspen Aerogels, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $6.70 and a fifty-two week high of $33.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.93 and a quick ratio of 2.48.

Aspen Aerogels (NYSE:ASPN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The construction company reported $0.15 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.04 by $0.11. Aspen Aerogels had a return on equity of 7.49% and a net margin of 2.95%. Equities analysts forecast that Aspen Aerogels, Inc. will post 0.17 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on ASPN shares. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their target price on shares of Aspen Aerogels from $20.00 to $15.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. B. Riley decreased their price objective on shares of Aspen Aerogels from $35.00 to $22.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Roth Mkm decreased their price objective on shares of Aspen Aerogels from $22.00 to $16.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Aspen Aerogels to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Aspen Aerogels from $25.00 to $13.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $19.11.

Aspen Aerogels Profile

Aspen Aerogels, Inc designs, develops, manufactures, and sells aerogel insulation products primarily for use in the energy infrastructure and sustainable insulation materials markets in the United States, Asia, Canada, Europe, and Latin America. It operates in two segments, Energy Industrial and Thermal Barrier.