iRobot (NASDAQ:IRBT) Rating Lowered to "Sell" at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of iRobot (NASDAQ:IRBT - Free Report) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report published on Saturday.

Separately, Needham & Company LLC reissued a "hold" rating on shares of iRobot in a report on Tuesday.

iRobot Stock Up 2.3 %

Shares of iRobot stock traded up $0.19 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $8.42. The company had a trading volume of 2,060,150 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,112,354. The company's 50-day moving average is $8.37 and its two-hundred day moving average is $8.41. iRobot has a twelve month low of $5.83 and a twelve month high of $17.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.45 and a quick ratio of 0.94. The company has a market cap of $257.32 million, a P/E ratio of -1.83 and a beta of 0.80.

iRobot (NASDAQ:IRBT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The industrial products company reported $0.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.06) by $0.09. iRobot had a negative net margin of 16.15% and a negative return on equity of 100.79%. The company had revenue of $193.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $218.41 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($3.09) earnings per share. iRobot's revenue for the quarter was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that iRobot will post -5.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of iRobot

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in IRBT. Sunbelt Securities Inc. grew its position in iRobot by 72.6% in the 2nd quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 7,550 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $69,000 after buying an additional 3,175 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of iRobot by 39.8% in the 3rd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 11,546 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $100,000 after acquiring an additional 3,285 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of iRobot by 28.4% in the fourth quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 15,595 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $121,000 after acquiring an additional 3,448 shares in the last quarter. nVerses Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of iRobot during the third quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in iRobot by 37.0% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 21,141 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $184,000 after purchasing an additional 5,709 shares during the period. 77.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About iRobot

iRobot Corporation designs, builds, and sells robots and home innovation products in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Japan, and internationally. The company offers floor care products, including Roomba floor vacuuming robots; Roomba accessories and consumables, such as the Clean Base Automatic Dirt Disposal, replacement dirt disposal bags for the Clean Base, filters, brushes, and batteries; Braava family of automatic floor mopping robots; and Braava accessories and consumables, which include cleaning solution, washable and disposable mopping pads, replacement tanks, and batteries, as well as subscription services.