BIOLASE, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIOL) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

BIOLASE, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIOL) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,100,000 shares, a growth of 25.7% from the May 15th total of 1,670,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 4,790,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.4 days. Approximately 6.6% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BIOLASE

An institutional investor recently raised its position in BIOLASE stock. Virtu Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of BIOLASE, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIOL) by 1,068.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 143,537 shares of the medical technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 131,248 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC owned 0.43% of BIOLASE worth $27,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. Institutional investors own 8.79% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on BIOL shares. Maxim Group downgraded shares of BIOLASE from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 24th. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of BIOLASE in a research report on Thursday. They set a “sell” rating on the stock. Finally, Benchmark restated a “speculative buy” rating and set a $0.40 price objective on shares of BIOLASE in a research report on Tuesday, May 14th.

BIOLASE Stock Performance

BIOL remained flat at $0.14 during trading on Friday. 748,796 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,370,080. The company has a market cap of $4.80 million, a P/E ratio of -0.01 and a beta of 0.74. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $0.16 and a 200-day moving average price of $0.48. BIOLASE has a 52 week low of $0.13 and a 52 week high of $10.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 34.06, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 1.17.

BIOLASE (NASDAQ:BIOL) last posted its earnings results on Monday, May 13th. The medical technology company reported ($0.36) earnings per share for the quarter. The company had revenue of $10.13 million for the quarter. BIOLASE had a negative net margin of 43.56% and a negative return on equity of 1,782.73%.

BIOLASE Company Profile

BIOLASE, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, markets, and sells laser systems for dental practitioners and their patients in the United States and internationally. Its dental laser systems allow dentists, periodontists, endodontists, pediatric dentists, oral surgeons, and other dental specialists to perform a range of minimally invasive dental procedures, including cosmetic, restorative, and complex surgical applications.