Astrotech Corporation (NASDAQ:ASTC) Short Interest Up 119.7% in August

Astrotech Corporation (NASDAQ:ASTC) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest during the month of August. As of August 14th, there was short interest totaling 110,734 shares, a growth of 119.7% from the July 30th total of 50,402 shares. Currently, 6.3% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 570,653 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.2 days.

Astrotech Stock Performance

ASTC traded up $0.03 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $7.15. The stock had a trading volume of 21,320 shares, compared to its average volume of 316,582. Astrotech has a 1 year low of $1.91 and a 1 year high of $68.85. The business has a fifty day moving average of $8.56 and a 200 day moving average of $7.92. The company has a market cap of $15.09 million, a P/E ratio of -0.85 and a beta of 4.86.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on ASTC. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Astrotech from a “sell” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Saturday. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Astrotech in a research report on Monday, August 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Sell rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Sell”.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Astrotech

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Susquehanna International Group LLP purchased a new stake in Astrotech during the third quarter valued at about $66,000. DRW Securities LLC lifted its stake in shares of Astrotech by 168.5% in the 4th quarter. DRW Securities LLC now owns 31,464 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $109,000 after acquiring an additional 19,747 shares during the last quarter. SCS Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Astrotech in the 2nd quarter valued at about $120,000. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG purchased a new stake in Astrotech during the 1st quarter valued at about $140,000. Finally, BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Astrotech during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $220,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 24.35% of the company’s stock.

About Astrotech

Astrotech Corp. (NASDAQ: ASTC) is a technology commercialization company headquartered near Austin, Texas. The firm sources early-stage innovations from government and university research programs—most notably from NASA—and advances them toward commercial readiness. Astrotech’s core mission is to bridge the gap between federally funded R&D and industrial applications across the life sciences and renewable energy sectors.

In its life sciences division, Astrotech has focused on mass spectrometry-based analytical instruments and diagnostic platforms.