AEye, Inc. (NASDAQ:LIDR) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

AEye, Inc. (NASDAQ:LIDR) saw a large decline in short interest in the month of May. As of May 29th, there was short interest totaling 3,031,762 shares, a decline of 34.7% from the May 14th total of 4,640,690 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 983,420 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.1 days. Currently, 7.4% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LIDR. Squarepoint Ops LLC bought a new position in AEye during the third quarter worth about $33,000. Flputnam Investment Management Co. bought a new position in AEye during the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. Millennium Management LLC bought a new position in AEye during the fourth quarter worth about $64,000. Two Sigma Investments LP bought a new position in AEye during the third quarter worth about $95,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in AEye by 6.8% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 108,323 shares of the company’s stock worth $112,000 after purchasing an additional 6,873 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 21.58% of the company’s stock.

AEye Stock Up 4.3%

LIDR stock traded up $0.07 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $1.59. 769,571 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,975,157. AEye has a 52 week low of $0.71 and a 52 week high of $6.44. The business has a 50-day moving average of $1.87 and a two-hundred day moving average of $1.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $73.40 million, a PE ratio of -1.40 and a beta of 2.75.

AEye (NASDAQ:LIDR) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 13th. The company reported ($0.15) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.11) by ($0.04). AEye had a negative net margin of 12,698.89% and a negative return on equity of 49.42%. The company had revenue of $0.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $0.28 million.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on LIDR. Craig Hallum began coverage on shares of AEye in a research note on Friday, April 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $3.50 target price on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of AEye from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of AEye in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $4.75.

About AEye

AEye, Inc is a technology company specializing in adaptive LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) systems designed to support advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), autonomous vehicles and other sensing applications. Through its intelligent detection and ranging (iDAR) platform, AEye integrates high-performance sensors with real-time data processing software to deliver customizable sensing ‘pipelines’ that prioritize relevant objects and environmental features. This approach enables longer detection ranges, higher resolution imagery and dynamic field-of-view adjustment, making AEye’s offerings well suited for complex driving environments and safety-critical scenarios.

The company’s core product suite centers on solid-state and hybrid LiDAR sensors that can be configured for a variety of end uses, including passenger vehicles, commercial trucks, robotics, mapping and defense.