Comparator of Newport Sets Nasdaq Trading Mark

NEWPORT BEACH — Comparator Systems Corp. set a record Friday for the most shares one company has ever traded on the Nasdaq, with more than 121 million shares of the technology company’s stock changing hands.

The price of the company’s stock also more than quadrupled, although Comparator Systems remained among the cheapest issues on the market, closing at just 28 cents per share, up 22 cents from its closing price on Thursday.

The trading volume more than doubled the previous record, set by Intel Corp. on Jan. 17. But Intel’s stock price was $50 on that day.

Robert Rogers, chief executive of Comparator, said he was “numb” after Friday’s market developments. “We’re still trying to figure it out,” he said.

Comparator Systems, which was founded in 1976 and has traded stock publicly since 1979, makes fingerprint identification systems used in law enforcement.

Rogers speculated that trading in Comparator stock soared because the company is about to unveil a new identification system that might be put to broader commercial use.

The new system has been in development for eight years, he said. Stockholders “have waited eight years,” Rogers said. “When the first [stock price] uptick came, the dam broke.”