STOCKS TELEGRAPH

Tag: tech

  • Ocean Power Technologies, Inc. (OPTT) Stock Surges as Latest Target of Raging Meme Stock Phenomenon

    Ocean Power Technologies, Inc. (OPTT) stock prices surged by 13.2967% shortly after market trading commenced on July 2nd, 2021, bringing the price per share up to USD$2.7871, before having peaked at USD$3.0577 earlier in the trading day.

    Inclusion in Russell Microcap Index

    June 23rd 2021 saw the company announce its inclusion in the Russell Microcap Index, effective as of the market opening on June 28th 2021. The company’s inclusion in the Index signals its growth potential, with the move benefitting existing shareholders as well as leading to greater exposure to potential institutional investors. Membership in the Russell Microcap Index entails automatic inclusion in relevant growth and value style indexes; and is determined annually by objective, market cap ranking, and style attributes.

    Revenue Reports

    Revenue for the third quarter of fiscal 2021 was reported at USD$0.3 million, down from the USD$0.7 million reported for the same time period of the prior year. Net loss for the 2021 quarter was up USD$0.3 million from the net loss reported for Q3 2020. The first nine months of fiscal 2021 reported USD$0.6 million in revenue, as compared to the USD$1.1 million reported for the same time period of the prior year. These movements are largely attributable to the company’s revenue-generating projects experiencing pandemic-related delays.

    Balance Sheet

    The company reported USD$80.4 million in total cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash as of January 31st, 2021. Net cash allocated towards operating activities was down by USD$0.1 million during the first nine months of fiscal 2021, reporting in at USD$8.5 million. The decrease is largely the result of lower cash spending on customer projects, as well as product development costs. The company generated net proceeds in the amount of USD$76.1 million with its ATM agreement and equity line agreements with Aspire Capital.

    Meme Stock Phenomenon

    Despite inclusion in the Russell Microcap Index, the recent activity in OPTT’s stock prices seems unwarranted. Without recent news coverage or significant changes in fundamentals, the company seems to be the latest target of the meme stock phenomenon that has been sweeping through the stock exchange. Driven by retail investors using the social media platform Reddit, underperforming companies are targeted for a coordinated short squeeze.

    Future Outlook for OPTT

    Armed with the fortuitous gains in its equity value, OPTT is poised to capitalize on the opportunities afforded to it in order to ensure more organic growth for the long term. Investors are hopeful that the management will leverage the resources at their disposal to usher in increases in shareholder value.

  • Marin Software Inc. (MRIN) Stock Skyrockets Under Spotlight of Meme Stock Phenomenon

    Marin Software Inc. (MRIN) stock prices surged by 54.64% shortly after market trading commenced on July 2nd, 2021, bringing the price per share up to USD$23.32 early on in the trading day.

    Collaboration with Instacart

    June 23rd, 2021 saw the company announce the addition of the ability to manage Instacart Ads to its flagship MarinOne platform, facilitating the connection between brands and customers directly at the point of sale. MRIN will leverage its extensive track record to help advertisers optimize over USD$40 billion in digital advertising spend to the rapidly growing platform.

    About Instacart

    As the leading North American online grocery platform, Instacart is partnered with more than 600 national, regional, and local retailers, including unique brand names. The company has 55,000 stores across more than 5,500 cities across North America. Instacart offers self-service and managed ad services for more than 2,500 CPG brands, including all of the Top 25 CPG companies.

    MarinOne Platform

    The self-serve MarinOne platform helps generate additional demand by unifying lower-funnel marketplace advertising with paid search and paid social campaigns. The platform allows marketers to align their efforts to ensure the seamless functioning of their channels across the customer journey. With the pandemic having seen consumer habits shift, online grocery delivery skyrocketed to unprecedented levels.

    Scope of Partnership

    Instacart is an essential addition to the digital marketing strategy MRIN, as a leading online grocery platform in North America. MRIN is excited to give advertisers on Instacart the opportunity to maximize returns on investments with the company’s added resources. The company’s automation facilitates the accessibility of managing Instacart Ad campaigns by automatically constructing campaigns, providing alerts on performance changes, and proactively identifying opportunities for better results.  The optimization tools serve to identify the most suitable levels of spend, while the best possible performance is ensured by MRIN bidding. The company’s Insight molecule automatically identifies opportunities such as Product A/B Testing in customers’ accounts, with estimates of potential value and easy implementation being provided.

    Meme Stock Phenomenon

    Despite the integration with Instacart Ads, the recent movement in MRIN’s stock price does not seem warranted. With an absence of any other news coverage or changes in fundamentals, it seems that MRIN is the latest target of the meme stock phenomenon that has been sweeping the stock exchange as of late. Driven by retail investors who use the social medial platform Reddit to coordinate a short squeeze in underperforming companies with high short interests. Inherent with risk and volatility, this phenomenon provides a fortuitous bump to companies that find themselves in its spotlight. Investors are hopeful that MRIN will leverage the additional resources at its disposal to usher in more organic growth.

  • ShiftPixy, Inc. (PIXY) Stock Undergoes Minor Volatility as MIAMI WORKS Campaign Continues

    ShiftPixy, Inc. (PIXY) stock prices were down by 3.39% as of the market closing on July 1st, 2021, bringing the price per share down to USD$2.28 at the end of the trading day. Subsequent pre-market fluctuations saw the stock rally by 1.75%, bringing it up to USD$2.32.

    MIAMI WORKS Campaign

    June 23rd, 2021 saw the company announce the launch of the MIAMI WORKS campaign, which provides staffing and recruiting solutions to facilitate the circumvention of the pandemic-driven staffing shortage in the restaurant and hospitality industries. PIXY hosted the first in a series of recruiting events on June 26th, 2021 in collaboration with local universities and community development groups. The event provided a platform for shift workers to easily find job opportunities that compensated workers with living wages, a signup bonus, flexible schedules, healthcare, workers’ compensation, and 401K benefits.

    Pandemic in South Florida

    South Florida was hit especially hard by severe staffing shortages following the outbreak of the pandemic, which proved to be a major challenge given how it relies so heavily on the hospitality and tourism business. The campaign will help business connect with and recruit willing and eligible workers more easily, facilitating the moves to get operations back to normal to effectively meet customer demand. A 60-day marketing effort has been initiated since the inauguration of the event, which seeks to connect the registered workforce to open positions across restaurants and other hospitality operators in the Miami area.

    Delivery Services Affected

    Compounding the effects of the labor shortage, third-party delivery services are facing a threat from authorities that would necessitate them to reclassify drivers as employees, rather than independent contractors. This has the potential of putting their business model and the restaurants they serve at risk. PIXY also facilitates the provision of a stable platform that offers fair wages and benefits for the delivery workers, allowing restaurants to reduce their reliance on third-party services by ramping up their own recruiting and staffing efforts.

    Facilitating Accessibility

    The job fair saw local restaurants and hospitality operators in PIXY-served communities being represented, where they were directly connected with the on-demand workforce. The process was made more accessible with the provision of the ability to complete onboarding quickly and efficiently, in an entirely paperless fashion.

    Future Outlook for PIXY

    Armed with the ongoing job fairs that increase the company’s scope and consolidate its brand image, PIXY is poised to capitalize on its trajectory of success. Investors are hopeful that the company will be able to usher in organic and long-term growth by making the most of the opportunities afforded to it.

  • ZW Data Action Technologies, Inc. (CNET) Stock Exhibits Volatility After Having Been Selected as Latest Meme Stock

    ZW Data Action Technologies, Inc. (CNET) stock prices were up by 6.50% as of the market closing on July 1st, 2021, bringing the price per share up to USD$2.13 at the end of the trading day. After-hours trading saw the stock plummet by 7.04%, bringing it down to USD$1.98.

    Revenue Reports

    Revenues for the quarter ended March 31st, 2021 were reported at USD$8.40 million, a 91.5% increase from the USD$4.38 reported in the same quarter of the prior year. The year-over-year difference is largely attributable to increases in revenue from the company’s internet advertising and related service business segment. This, in turn, has benefitted from the economic recovery since the Covid-19 outbreak in the second half of the prior year.

    Costs of Revenues

    Q1 2021 total cost of revenues came out to USD$9.11 million for the quarter ended March 31st, 2021, up a massive 161.5% from the USD$3.49 million reported for Q1 2020. The year-over-year difference was largely driven by increases in cost derived from the distribution of the right to use search engine marketing services that CNET had previously purchased from key search engines. Further contributing to the yearly difference were costs related to the provision of Internet advertising services with various ad portals.

    Gross Loss and Margins

    Gross loss for the quarter ended March 31st, 2021 was reported at USD$0.72 million down from the gross profit of USD$0.90 reported in the same period of the prior year. This difference over the year is primarily attributable to the negative gross margin rate resulting from the main stream of service revenues. Accordingly, the gross loss margin was 8.5% for the quarter, while the prior-year quarter reported a gross profit margin of 20.5%.

    Meme Stock Phenomenon

    With no recent news coverage since the end of May 2021 and no significant changes in fundamentals, CNET seems to have found itself to be the target of the meme stock phenomenon that has resurged through the markets lately. After the massive volatility around the end of June 29th, 2021, CNET stock continues to dip and rally in significant swings. Driven by retail investors who coordinate on the social media platform Reddit to execute a collaborative short squeeze of underperforming companies with little to no sound bases for being invested in, meme stocks have been all the rage lately.

    Future Outlook for CNET

    Armed with the fortuitous strengthening of the position of its equity value, CNET is poised to capitalize on the opportunities presented to it in a bid to usher in more organic growth. Investors are hopeful that management will be able to keep the snowball going rather than a massive downward correction, as is seen very often with meme stocks.

  • Ayro, Inc. (AYRO) stock Continues Uptrend Following News of Agreement with KICC

    Ayro, Inc. (AYRO) stock prices were up by a marginal 2.87% shortly after market trading commenced on July 1st, 2021, bringing the price per share up to USD$5.02 early on in the trading day.

    Manufacturing Agreement

    July 1st, 2021 saw the company announce the first Club Car Current vehicles being produced as per a contract manufacturing agreement with the Karma Innovation and Customization Center (KICC). The light-duty electric vehicles address the gap in the market between full-sized trucks and smart utility carts for low-speed logistics and cargo services in campus and urban environments. The formation of the partnership that had arranged for the production of EV vehicles took place in September of 2020.

    Combined Resources

    In the interest of Karma’s ongoing business to business (B2B) initiatives, the relationship with AYRO will utilize their combined OEM expertise and capabilities. The collaborative effort will seek to facilitate that provision of manufacturing, engineering, design, and other services to customers in the mobility space. AYRO’s end-user, market intelligence, and engineering expertise will be complemented by KICC’s manufacturing capabilities and development experience in order to deliver light-duty trucks and electric delivery vehicles to businesses across the U.S.

    Club Car Current

    The Club Car Current is designed for several bed options and accessories, including, but not limited to, van box, pickup truck with sides, flatbed configurations, in order to ensure fleet versatility. It is an ideal solution for the local market, as evidenced by its certification under the State’s California Air Resource Board (CARB) Certification, with its global warming and air quality of zero emission vehicles scoring “cleanest”.

    Working Together

    With AYRO having met exceptionally strong demand from fleet customers, Karma is helping the company deliver the initial run of vehicles from their Moreno facility. This is despite the supply chain challenges that have been adversely affecting production for the rest of the industry. Together, they enable AYRO to deliver on their brand promise to provide practical solutions that address the needs of various business types by providing purpose-built EVs that are fully customizable, affordable, and immediately available.

    Future Outlook for AYRO

    Armed with its recent collaboration, AYRO is poised to capitalize on potential opportunities to consolidate and expand its market footprint in the EV sector. Investors are hopeful that the partnership will facilitate a fruitful leveraging of resources to ensure a continued trajectory of success.

  • Bridgeline Digital, Inc. (BLIN) Stock Skyrockets as Latest Target of Meme Stock Phenomenon

    Bridgeline Digital, Inc. (BLIN) stock prices were up by a massive 26.84% as of the market closing on June 30th, 2021, bringing the price per share up to USD$4.30 at the end of the trading day. Subsequent pre-market fluctuations have seen the stock rise by 25.58%, bringing it up to USD$5.40.

    Unbound CMS Contract

    June 22nd 2021 saw the company announced the signing of a long-term contract of Unbound CMS with one of the largest haircutting franchises in the U.S. With more than 1800 locations across the U.S., the customer has been a long term client with Unbound CMS since 2021, when their corporate site was designed and built by the Unbound Team. Over the years, Unbound integrated store locators and developed franchisee local sites, with each Unbound-powered franchise site having its own unique URL with webpages for each location.

    Unbound Merits

    The company made moves recently to consolidate the network of franchises under the main domain, hoping to streamline the overall digital experience, while also reducing costs over the long term. After market research into evaluating CMS options, Unbound was recognized as the most appropriate solution for the project. As per a key part of the closing of this franchise-specific renewal deal, Unbound will facilitate the provision of a powerful Local Pages solution. The contract to develop and implement the new digital strategy is set to last 36 months.

    Q2 2021 Financial Reports

    Total revenue for the second quarter of fiscal 2021, ended March 31st 2021, was reported at USD$2.9 million, up from the USD$2.7 million reported for the prior year period. With total revenue consisting of Licenses and Services revenue, the former exhibited 8% growth, while the latter grew by 2%. Gross profits were also up, by 16% up to USD$1.8 million for the quarter ended March 31st 2021, comparable to the USD$1.6 million reported in the prior year period.

    Meme Stock Phenomenon

    Despite these promising developments over the quarter, there has been no news coverage or change in the fundamentals of BLIN to justify the meteoric rise it has seen lately. It seems very likely that the company is fortuitously finding itself to be the next target of the meme stock phenomenon that has been taking over stock markets as of late. Driven by retail investors who use the social media platform Reddit, this phenomenon sees underperforming stocks with high short interests get pumped by a coordinated short squeeze.

    Future Outlook for BLIN

    Despite being rife with volatility on the basis of there not being sound reasons to invest in a company based on its merit, the activity affords BLIN extensive opportunities as it sees its equity value skyrocket. Investors are hopeful that the company will make moves to maintain the momentum generated by the Reddit-driven investor community.

  • Streamline Health Solutions, Inc. (STRM) Stock on the Rise Following Acquisition of New Contract

    Streamline Health Solutions, Inc. (STRM) Stock on the Rise Following Acquisition of New Contract

    Streamline Health Solutions, Inc. (STRM) stock prices were up by 7.02% shortly after market trading commenced on June 30th, 2021, bringing the price per share up to USD$1.84 early on in the trading day.

    New Contract

    June 30th, 2021 saw the company announce the signing of a contract with a 2,367-bed, Epic EMR-based health system serving the Midwest U.S. STRM’s eValuator cloud-based automated pre- and post-bill coding analysis technology will be used by the health system to improve revenue integrity, as well as a financial performance from both inpatient and outpatient services.

    Scope of eValuator

    The company is revolutionizing the industry with a movement to facilitate financial improvement with the use of pre-bill technology. eValuator offers providers the chance to address coding issues before they contribute to lower revenues, denied claims, and non-compliance exposure. STRM combines this innovative technology with expert auditing services in order to provide its clients with a comprehensive Revenue Integrity Program. The eValuator program substantially improves current financial performance by helping users optimize coding and documentation accuracy for pre-billing patient encounters. The program also serves to assist providers in making the transition to new payment models.

    PPP Forgiveness

    STRM announced on June 16th, 2021 that it had received a notice from Western Alliance Bank, the lender of the company’s Paycheck Protection Program loan which approved the forgiveness of the PPP loan. A total of USD$2,300,600 had been approved to be written off by the U.S. Small Business Administration. The financial support stemming from the implementation of the CARES Act has helped U.S businesses stay afloat over the course of the devastating coronavirus pandemic. The loan-turned-grant allowed the company to maintain its workforce despite the effects of the Covid-19 situation.

    Revenue Reports

    Revenues for the first quarter of the fiscal year 2021 were reported at USD$3 million, up from the USD$2.9 million reported in the prior-year quarter. SaaS revenue was up a very healthy 32% as compared to reports from the first quarter of the fiscal year 2020, largely contributing to the growth in total revenues for the quarter. The increase was partially offset by lower revenue from professional services, audit services, and maintenance and support.

  • HUTCHMED (China) Ltd. (HCM) Stock Surges Following Listing on Hong Kong Exchange

    HUTCHMED (China) Ltd. (HCM) Stock Surges Following Listing on Hong Kong Exchange

    HUTCHMED (China) Ltd. (HCM) stock prices were up down by a minor 0.81% as of the market closing on June 29th, 2021, bringing the price per share down to USD$33.23 at the end of the trading day. Subsequent pre-market fluctuations saw the stock surge by 14.35%, bringing it up to USD$38.00.

    Hong Kong Listing

    The company had a massively successful first day of trading in Honk Kong, having been listed after a delayed previous attempt earlier in 2019. The earlier plan to list was shelved amid market uncertainties at the time. The biopharmaceutical company’s shares that were already trading on in the U.S and U.K jumped a massive 51%, with the company raising USD$537 million in their offering.

    Global Offering

    June 23rd2021 saw the company announce the pricing of its global offering which comprises an international offering and a Hong Kong public offering in connection with a primary listing of its ordinary shares on the Stick Exchange of Hong Kong Ltd.’s Main Board. The offering will see the sale of up to 104 million new ordinary shares of HCM.

    Pricing of Global Offering

    Both the International Offering and the Hong Kong Public Offering final offer price has been set at roughly USD$25.82 per American depositary share (ADS), with each ADS representing 5 ordinary shares of the company. The offer price was determined by the closing price of the company’s ADSs on the Nasdaq Global Select Market and shares on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange on June 22nd, 2021. Shares are expected to begin trading on June 30th, 2021, pending approval from the SEHK.

    Offering Details

    The offering is expected to generate USD$0.54 billion in gross proceeds, before the deduction of expenses related to the offering. The agreement also comes equipped with an option for international underwriters to buy up to 15.6 million new issued Shares at the offer price, in case of over-allotments. This option is available for 30 days after the last day of lodging applications under the Hong Kong Public Offering.

    Allocation of Resources

    Net proceeds generated from the global offering are forecasted to be allocated towards the advancement of the company slate-stage clinical programs, as well as its pipeline of clinical-stage and preclinical stage candidates. This move serves to consolidate the company’s commercialization, clinical, regulatory, and manufacturing capability, as well as fund future opportunities and acquisitions.

    Future Outlook for HCM

    Armed with a solid liquidity position, HACM is poised to capitalize the added resources generated from its global offering. Current and potential investors are hopeful that management will continue to leverage the resources at their disposal to facilitate significant and sustained increases in shareholder value.

  • AeroVironment, Inc. (AVAV) Stock Continues Downward Trend Following Disclosure of Q4 2021 Financial Report

    AeroVironment, Inc. (AVAV) Stock Continues Downward Trend Following Disclosure of Q4 2021 Financial Report

    AeroVironment, Inc. (AVAV) stock prices were down by 0.76% as of the market closing on June 29th, 2021, bringing the price per share down to USD$109.87 at the end of the trading day. After hours trading  saw the stock dip by another 4.43%, bringing it up to USD$105.00.

    Revenue Reports

    The company reported revenues for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021 amounting to USD$136 million, up from the USD$135.2 million reported for the same time period of the prior fiscal year. The difference is largely attributable to a USD$15.8 million increase in revenue of the company’s Medium Unmanned Aircraft Systems (MUAS), as a result of the acquisition of Arcturus UAV in February of 2021.

    Partial Offsetting of Revenue

    The year-over-year increase in revenue was offset by a USD$15 million decrease in revenue of AVAV’s Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) segment. This, in turn, was a result of a USD$14.2 million reduction in service revenue, as well as a decrease in product sales amounting to USD$0.8 million. The UAS segment consists of s the company’s existing small UAS, tactical missile systems and HAPS product lines, as well as the recently acquired Progeny Systems Corp’s Intelligent Systems Group (ISG).

    Gross Margins

    Gross margin for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021 was reported at USD$59.7 million, up 12% from the USD$ 53.2 million reported for the prior year quarter. This difference was largely driven by a USD$8.8 million increase in product margin, while being partially offset by a USD$2.3 million reduction in service margin. Gross margins as a percentage increased fomr 39% to 44% over the course of the time period. This increase was primarily attributable to a favorable product and services mix.

    Income from Operations

    Q4 2021 income from operations was reported at USD$17.8 million, a USD$3.5 million decrease from the USD$21.3 million reported for Q4 2020. This difference is primarily driven by an increase in SG&A expenses in the amount of USD$8.5 million, as well as R&D costs having increased by USD$1.5 million. These increases were partially offset by a USD$6.5 million increase in gross margin. The increase in SG&A expenses was largely due to USD$3.3 million in acquisition-related expenses associated with the acquisitions of Arcturus UAV, ISG, and Telerob GmbH.

    Future Outlook for AVAV

    Armed with its recent string of potentially massively beneficial acquisitions, AVAV is poised to capitalize on the opportunities afforded to it as a result of its collaborations. Current and potential investors are hopeful that management will continue to leverage the resources at their disposal to facilitate significant and sustained increases in shareholder value.

  • Powerbridge Technologies Co., Ltd. (PBTS) Stock Skyrockets as Latest Possible Target of Meme Stock Phenomenon

    Powerbridge Technologies Co., Ltd. (PBTS) Stock Skyrockets as Latest Possible Target of Meme Stock Phenomenon

    Powerbridge Technologies Co., Ltd.(PBTS) stock prices were up by a massive 100% as of the market closing on June 29th, 2021, bringing the price per share up to USD$2.86 at the end of the trading day. After hours trading saw the stock surge by another 30.42%, bringing it up to USD$3.73.

    Partnership with Huawei

    April 14th, 2021 saw the company announce its Strategic Cooperation Agreement with Huawei Technologies to collaboratively promote and market their services to local Chinese ports and customs. The agreement will be the framework on which their vision use innovative technologies such as Blockchain, Cloud Computing, Artificial Intelligence, and Internet of Thing in the global trade industry application. The parties also plan to leverage their joint advantage to collaboratively market their product and services to their target demographics.

    Details of the Agreement

    The agreement will also aim to seek a deeper collaboration in the interest of facilitating the provision of better digital transformation solutions in the global trade industry, as well as expanding the companies’ marketing influence both domestically and internationally. As per the agreement, the companies will promote the construction of Smart Ports while upgrading and accelerating its construction. Furthermore, the partnership will seek to create innovative solutions for Smart Bonded Zone.

    Expanded Scope of PBTS

    With Huawei’s advantage in market resources and PBTS’ expertise in global trade digital solutions, the two are committed to jointly building a new global trade ecosystem in China by leveraging their pooled resources. The partnership is expected to result in the promotion of more digital upgrades, as well as innovative solutions for Chinese custom, ports, and special bonded zone.Concurrent with the announcement of the partnership, PBTS launched its innovative Smart Port and Smart Customs products.

    Meme Stock Phenomenon

    While hugely impactful, the collaboration does not merit the overnight doubling of PBTS’s equity value. With no recent news coverage or changes in fundamentals, it is likely that PBTS has found itself to be the latest target of the meme stock phenomenon that has been resurged in stock markets. Rife with volatility and inherent risk, meme stocks are pumped by retail investors that coordinate a short squeeze on underperforming stocks. These stocks have little to no reason to be invested in, therefore entailing massive volatility and uncertainty.

    Future Outlook for PBTS

    Armed with its fortuitous surge in stock price, PBTS is poised to capitalize on its partnership with Huawei. Current and potential investors are hopeful that management will continue to leverage the resources at their disposal to facilitate significant and sustained increases in shareholder value.