A New Beginning for Codexis?

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Mar 08, 2013
Codexis Inc. (CDXS) is a company based out of Redwood City, Calif., that specializes in green chemistry. Codexis uses biotechnology to reengineer enzymes and microorganisms in order to contrast the problems faced by large industrial corporations. Codexis has a market cap of $89.2 million.

Codexis has not been able to get out of the downward spiral that it has been trapped in since 2010. Codexis is not the only company that’s been suffering. Many similar companies like Solazyme (SZYM) and Gevo (GEVO) have also not been able to get out of this three-year rut. In 2012, Codexis opted for a new CEO and left its founding CEO Alan Shaw behind.

But it looks like Codexis might be turning a new page with two insider buys this past week. On Monday, March 4, Senior Vice President and CFO David O’Toole bought 10,000 shares for approximately $2.02 each for a total of $20,200. President and CEO John Nicols followed suit on March 4 by adding 54,000 shares at $2.22 each for a grand total of $119,880. Nicols now holds 884,000 shares of Codexis and O’Toole owns 115,384 shares. The price of each share is up 7.66% since Nichols purchase.

This insider transaction marks the first consecutive insider buys for Codexis since August 2010.

John Nicols took over the reigns as CEO and president of Codexis in June of 2012. Prior to Codexis, Nicols spent 22 years in various roles at Albernarle Corporation (ALB). He received his B.S. in chemical engineering from the Polytechnic Institute of New York University and his M.B.A. from the Sloan School of Management at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

David O’Toole was appointed senior vice president and CFO of Codexis in September 2012. Before Codexis O’Toole was the vice president and CFO at Response Genetics (RGDX). O’Toole received his B.S. in accounting at the University of Arizona and is a certified public accountant.

Up 5.56% this afternoon, Codexis currently trades at $2.47.

Jim Simons is the only Huru followed by GuruFocus that currently has shares in Codexis. Simons owns 54,312 shares.

For more information on Insider Trades for Codexis look at John Nicols Insider Trades and David O’Toole’s Insider Trades.