Charles & Colvard, Ltd. (NASDAQ:CTHR) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

Charles & Colvard, Ltd. (NASDAQ:CTHR) was the target of a significant drop in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 115,700 shares, a drop of 10.8% from the March 15th total of 129,700 shares. Currently, 0.5% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 121,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.9 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com began coverage on Charles & Colvard, Ltd. in a report on Monday, April 8th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Ollin B. Sykes acquired 107,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was bought at an average price of $0.33 per share, for a total transaction of $35,475.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 1,844,398 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $608,651.34. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders have acquired a total of 139,850 shares of company stock worth $47,311 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 20.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Citadel Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Charles & Colvard, Ltd. by 104.3% in the fourth quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC now owns 98,054 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 50,054 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Charles & Colvard, Ltd. by 14.8% during the 1st quarter. State Street Corp now owns 93,048 shares of the company’s stock valued at $146,000 after purchasing an additional 12,003 shares during the last quarter. Meros Investment Management LP boosted its position in shares of Charles & Colvard, Ltd. by 51.7% in the 4th quarter. Meros Investment Management LP now owns 980,753 shares of the company’s stock worth $807,000 after purchasing an additional 334,065 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Charles & Colvard, Ltd. by 10.3% during the 1st quarter. Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,077,051 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,932,000 after buying an additional 194,505 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 23.59% of the company’s stock.

Charles & Colvard, Ltd. Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ CTHR opened at $0.30 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.10 million, a PE ratio of -0.40 and a beta of 0.91. Charles & Colvard, Ltd. has a 12-month low of $0.29 and a 12-month high of $1.22. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $0.35 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $0.40.

Charles & Colvard, Ltd. (NASDAQ:CTHR) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported ($0.09) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $7.91 million during the quarter. Charles & Colvard, Ltd. had a negative net margin of 91.98% and a negative return on equity of 57.44%.

Charles & Colvard, Ltd. Company Profile

Charles & Colvard, Ltd. operates as a fine jewelry company in the United States and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Online Channels and Traditional. It manufactures, markets, and distributes moissanite jewels and finished moissanite jewelry under the Charles & Colvard Created Moissanite brand; and premium moissanite gemstones under the Forever One brand name.