Loewenbaum, Insider at 3D Systems Corp, Continues to Buy Shares

A long, bright future is ahead for those making magic with 3D printing. And exploration has really only just begun. As we see this new technology allowing for incredible strides in the medical industry, for example, offering a wide range of important innovations–like the 3D printing of bones or 3D printed blood vessels–it’s obvious we’re in the thick of it in a very positive way, and there is certainly no turning back now.

Nearly every industry is experiencing the rewards and goodness of 3D printing, from automotive and aerospace, to construction and home goods. Numerous startups powered by contemporary brilliant minds are thriving, and with great success, while offering a much different spin on the traditional business–and office–model.

We still look to industry titans such as Stratsys and 3D Systems to act as beacons however, when it comes to finances and what that means for the future. Lately, their light has been seriously dimmed when it comes to the numbers, which are quite dismal and even downright scary–especially if you own stock. We have of course been watching the carnage and keeping an eye on the major players, wondering when they will have hit the bottom. Obviously some are planning for great future success and regain, however, if continued activity in the stock market by Walter Loewenbaum is any indication.

As director of 3D Systems Corp (NYSE:DDD), either Loewenbaum knows something we don’t, or he is just incredibly optimistic about the company–and future stock values. This is not the first story we’ve followed on his stock purchases, which now seem to be sporadic–but certainly have not gone unnoticed–throughout the year, having begun with 50,500 shares purchased in February, totaling $455,758 USD. We reported as substantial purchases continued throughout August and now he has just purchased 19,900 more shares with a total value of $179,404 USD in the last month. Loewenbaum reportedly also owns indirectly several hundreds of thousands of shares through trust funds and other entities.

According to recent data, Loewenbaum currently owns 1.46 million shares which make up around 1.31% of the company’s market cap. With a heavy decline since May of this year and a downward trend, 3D Systems Corp has been listed as an underperformer, and the majority of analysts list it as a hold. Just recently, they reported consolidated revenue of $151.6 million for the third quarter, which was down 9.2% or $15.4 million year-on-year. Meanwhile, its product revenue decreased 27.4% or $20.0 million year-over-year to $52.9 million, which is blamed on lower sales of 3D printers.

Needham rated it as a buy on November 5^th, Stifel Nicolaus maintained it as a hold on August 7^th, and UBS gave the stock a sell rating in July. Other current news on the street doesn’t look good for 3D Systems Corp as reports of their stocks tanking seem to be due to investor concerns and perception caused by lackluster numbers for companies like Stratasys and ExOne.

3D Systems Corp is a holding company, with a current market cap of $1.05 billion. They currently have negative earnings. So why the buys? We can only continue to have optimism as we did this summer, speculating on much larger stock purchases by Loewenbaum despite their stocks having lost 72% this year.

We certainly continue to see the buys as a good sign, and as the new year rolls around, will hope to see evidence of what caused such good faith and resulting financial output–despite industry reports of intense competition ahead in the new year, which should offer challenge to many within the industry. We should catch a further glimpse as to what’s in store as tradeshows and expos gear up for 2016, beginning with International CES 2016 in Las Vegas, set for January.  Discuss this story in the DDD Insider Buying forum thread on 3DPB.com.