Short Interest in Rapid Micro Biosystems, Inc. (NASDAQ:RPID) Grows By 46.4%

Rapid Micro Biosystems, Inc. (NASDAQ:RPID) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 317,445 shares, an increase of 46.4% from the February 26th total of 216,880 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 235,152 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.3 days. Currently, 1.0% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

RPID has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Rapid Micro Biosystems from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, March 22nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Rapid Micro Biosystems in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Rapid Micro Biosystems has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $8.00.

Insider Transactions at Rapid Micro Biosystems

In other news, CEO Robert G. Jr. Spignesi sold 17,922 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.11, for a total value of $73,659.42. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,169,848 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,808,075.28. The trade was a 1.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Longitude Capital Partners Ii, sold 49,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.88, for a total transaction of $190,120.00. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 249,705 shares of company stock worth $1,021,364. 29.96% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Rapid Micro Biosystems

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Rapid Micro Biosystems by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 204,079 shares of the company’s stock worth $704,000 after acquiring an additional 3,143 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in Rapid Micro Biosystems by 46.1% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 16,922 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 5,341 shares during the period. XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new stake in Rapid Micro Biosystems during the 2nd quarter valued at $144,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Rapid Micro Biosystems by 6.7% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 965,018 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,223,000 after purchasing an additional 60,655 shares during the period. Finally, Evernest Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in Rapid Micro Biosystems by 355.1% during the third quarter. Evernest Financial Advisors LLC now owns 200,234 shares of the company’s stock worth $669,000 after purchasing an additional 156,234 shares during the period. 52.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Rapid Micro Biosystems Stock Performance

NASDAQ RPID traded down $0.08 on Friday, hitting $2.20. 226,900 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 257,093. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 3.31 and a quick ratio of 2.36. The business’s fifty day moving average is $3.80 and its 200 day moving average is $3.54. Rapid Micro Biosystems has a 52 week low of $1.86 and a 52 week high of $4.94. The company has a market capitalization of $100.02 million, a PE ratio of -2.06 and a beta of 1.38.

Rapid Micro Biosystems (NASDAQ:RPID) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 12th. The company reported ($0.28) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.23) by ($0.05). Rapid Micro Biosystems had a negative net margin of 140.30% and a negative return on equity of 95.40%. The firm had revenue of $11.28 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.93 million. Research analysts anticipate that Rapid Micro Biosystems will post -1.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Rapid Micro Biosystems

Rapid Micro Biosystems (NASDAQ: RPID) develops and commercializes automated microbial detection and contamination control solutions for the life sciences industry. Its flagship offering, the Growth Direct® System, leverages digital imaging and proprietary growth indicator plates to identify and count microorganisms more rapidly than traditional culture-based methods. The company’s technology platform is designed to streamline quality control workflows in pharmaceutical, biotechnology and vaccine manufacturing settings, helping clients reduce release times and improve operational efficiency.

In addition to the Growth Direct® System, Rapid Micro Biosystems offers an integrated suite of software and consumables that support automated data capture, analysis and reporting.