Piper Jaffray's Jensen Still Sees 3D Systems Expectations As 'Too High'

• 3D Systems Corporation (NYSE: DDD) announced on Thursday that Avi Reichental – the company's president, CEO and board director – had stepped down.
• The stock fell 5.25 percent on Thursday trading, but recuperated about 1 percent on Friday.
• Following the news, Piper Jaffray analysts Troy D. Jensen and Austin R. Bohlig shared some thoughts on the issue, reiterating a Neutral rating on the shares.

In a report issued Thursday, analysts at Piper Jaffray reiterated a Neutral rating and $14.00 price target on shares of 3D Systems following the resignation of Avi Reichental. Coincidentally, Reichental's immediate replacement was announced to be Andrew Johnson, who will serve as interim president and CEO, while Director and Chief Technology Officer Charles Hull will serve as chairman.

“While we respected Avi's ability to turnaround a company that was nearly bankrupt when he took over as CEO 12 years ago, we believe over the last few years his inability to effectively manage the company and a growing channel began to materially drag on the top and bottom line,” Piper Jaffray’s report assured.

Related Link: 3D Systems Reports Launch Of 3D Printing Lab With U.S. Army

High Expectations

3D Systems is scheduled to report its third-quarter financial results on November 4 before the market open. Now, given Reichental’s resignation, Stratasys, Ltd. (NASDAQ: SSYS)’s downbeat preannouncement, and another quarter of poor results from Piper’s third-quarter survey, Jensen and Bohlig said they expect 3D Systems to deliver figures well under consensus estimates.

While analysts are calling for sales of $179.41 million – up about 6 percent sequentially, Piper is modeling revenue of $170.5 million and earnings of $0.05 per share, versus the Street’s consensus of $0.06 per share.

Disclosure: Javier Hasse holds no positions in any of the securities mentioned above.

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