Astrotech Co. (NASDAQ:ASTC – Get Rating) was the target of a large growth in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 60,800 shares, a growth of 201.0% from the November 30th total of 20,200 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 15,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.9 days. Approximately 4.0% of the company's stock are sold short.

Insider Activity

In other Astrotech news, major shareholder Braden Michael Leonard bought 166,434 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 14th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $0.38 per share, with a total value of $63,244.92. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 5,905,845 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,244,221.10. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In the last three months, insiders have bought 514,881 shares of company stock worth $187,940. 9.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Astrotech

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ASTC. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its stake in shares of Astrotech by 173.4% in the third quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 158,589 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $70,000 after purchasing an additional 100,589 shares during the period. Marquette Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Astrotech by 33.0% in the second quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 367,864 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $158,000 after purchasing an additional 91,183 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Astrotech in the first quarter valued at about $56,000.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Astrotech Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ASTC traded up $0.23 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $9.55. 9,190 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 25,825. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $10.96 and a 200-day simple moving average of $12.61. Astrotech has a 1-year low of $9.28 and a 1-year high of $23.19.

Astrotech (NASDAQ:ASTC – Get Rating) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 10th. The aerospace company reported ($1.50) EPS for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $0.04 million during the quarter. Astrotech had a negative return on equity of 16.29% and a negative net margin of 1,226.53%.

About Astrotech

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Astrotech Corporation operates as a mass spectrometry company worldwide. It owns and licenses the intellectual property related to the Astrotech Mass Spectrometer Technology, a platform mass spectrometry technology. The company also develops TRACER 1000, a mass spectrometer-based explosive trace detector to replace the explosives trace detectors used at airports, cargo and other secured facilities, and borders.

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