Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Grows Holdings in Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS) by 6.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 369,936 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after purchasing an additional 22,913 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Axcelis Technologies were worth $25,847,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Axcelis Technologies by 184.3% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 668 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 433 shares during the last quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Axcelis Technologies by 118.8% during the fourth quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,204 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $783,000 after purchasing an additional 6,084 shares during the last quarter. Chase Investment Counsel Corp purchased a new position in Axcelis Technologies during the fourth quarter worth about $1,048,000. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in Axcelis Technologies by 27.8% during the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 6,007 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $420,000 after purchasing an additional 1,307 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Axcelis Technologies by 30.7% in the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,492 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $314,000 after acquiring an additional 1,056 shares during the last quarter. 89.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on ACLS shares. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Axcelis Technologies in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Craig Hallum dropped their price target on shares of Axcelis Technologies from $115.00 to $105.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, William Blair cut shares of Axcelis Technologies from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $154.00.

Axcelis Technologies Stock Performance

Axcelis Technologies stock opened at $58.27 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $64.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $79.05. The company has a current ratio of 5.41, a quick ratio of 4.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.87 billion, a PE ratio of 9.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.52 and a beta of 1.62. Axcelis Technologies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $53.67 and a 1-year high of $158.61.

Axcelis Technologies (NASDAQ:ACLS) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The semiconductor company reported $1.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.29. Axcelis Technologies had a net margin of 19.75% and a return on equity of 21.02%. As a group, analysts expect that Axcelis Technologies, Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Axcelis Technologies declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, March 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the semiconductor company to buy up to 5.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Axcelis Technologies Profile

Axcelis Technologies, Inc designs, manufactures, and services ion implantation and other processing equipment used in the fabrication of semiconductor chips in the United States, Europe, and Asia Pacific. The company offers high energy, high current, and medium current implanters for various application requirements.