SurgePays, Inc. (NASDAQ:SURG) Short Interest Down 19.3% in October

SurgePays, Inc. (NASDAQ:SURG) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest in October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 392,300 shares, a decline of 19.3% from the October 15th total of 486,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 182,300 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.2 days. Approximately 2.9% of the company’s stock are sold short.

SurgePays Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SURG opened at $1.63 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 6.11 and a current ratio of 7.38. The firm has a market cap of $32.19 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.51 and a beta of 0.94. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $1.69 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $2.62. SurgePays has a fifty-two week low of $1.33 and a fifty-two week high of $9.23.

SurgePays (NASDAQ:SURG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 13th. The medical equipment provider reported ($0.66) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.17) by ($0.49). SurgePays had a negative net margin of 27.39% and a negative return on equity of 52.33%. The company had revenue of $15.09 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.02 million. On average, analysts expect that SurgePays will post -1.02 earnings per share for the current year.

SurgePays announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, August 13th that authorizes the company to buyback $5.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the medical equipment provider to purchase up to 14.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Kevin Brian Cox sold 35,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.48, for a total transaction of $51,948.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 5,786,012 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,563,297.76. This trade represents a 0.60 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Anthony George Evers sold 33,334 shares of SurgePays stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.54, for a total value of $51,334.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 261,590 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $402,848.60. This represents a 11.30 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 91,434 shares of company stock worth $103,514. Corporate insiders own 29.40% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SurgePays

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SURG. Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new stake in shares of SurgePays in the second quarter worth $45,000. Royce & Associates LP purchased a new position in SurgePays in the third quarter worth about $34,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of SurgePays by 49.0% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 24,331 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $78,000 after purchasing an additional 7,998 shares during the period. Corsair Capital Management L.P. increased its position in shares of SurgePays by 50.3% during the 3rd quarter. Corsair Capital Management L.P. now owns 29,864 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 10,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI lifted its stake in shares of SurgePays by 50.0% in the 2nd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 36,000 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $111,000 after purchasing an additional 12,000 shares during the period. 6.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Ascendiant Capital Markets cut their target price on SurgePays from $9.50 to $9.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th.

About SurgePays

SurgePays, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a financial technology and telecom company in the United States. It operates through three segments: Mobile Virtual Network Operators, Comprehensive Platform Services, and Lead Generation. The company offers subsidized and non-subsidized mobile virtual network operators for internet connectivity through mobile broadband services to consumers; ACH banking relationships and fintech transactions platform to convenience stores; wireless top-up transactions and wireless product aggregation; and lead generation and case management solutions primarily to law firms in the mass tort industry, as well as call center activities.