PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Lowers Holdings in Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEIS)

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lessened its position in Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEIS) by 8.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,835 shares of the electronics maker’s stock after selling 668 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in Advanced Energy Industries were worth $790,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH lifted its holdings in shares of Advanced Energy Industries by 10.2% during the fourth quarter. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH now owns 139,556 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $16,137,000 after purchasing an additional 12,860 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Advanced Energy Industries by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 460,121 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $53,204,000 after buying an additional 18,533 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Advanced Energy Industries during the 4th quarter valued at about $3,971,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Advanced Energy Industries by 12.4% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 483,848 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $50,920,000 after acquiring an additional 53,566 shares during the period. Finally, BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. purchased a new position in shares of Advanced Energy Industries during the third quarter valued at approximately $12,306,000. 99.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on AEIS. Bank of America raised shares of Advanced Energy Industries from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $140.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 price objective on shares of Advanced Energy Industries in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Advanced Energy Industries from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on Advanced Energy Industries from $138.00 to $136.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $125.00 target price on shares of Advanced Energy Industries in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Advanced Energy Industries has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $126.56.

Insider Buying and Selling at Advanced Energy Industries

In other news, COO Eduardo Bernal Acebedo sold 19,309 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.61, for a total value of $2,155,077.49. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 19,822 shares in the company, valued at $2,212,333.42. This trade represents a 49.34 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Lanesha Minnix sold 1,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.37, for a total transaction of $206,992.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,492 shares in the company, valued at approximately $451,760.04. This trade represents a 31.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Advanced Energy Industries Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of AEIS opened at $107.39 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 75.10, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.43. Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. has a one year low of $89.12 and a one year high of $132.16. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $116.60 and a 200 day moving average price of $112.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 3.27 and a current ratio of 4.42.

Advanced Energy Industries (NASDAQ:AEIS) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The electronics maker reported $1.06 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by ($0.03). Advanced Energy Industries had a net margin of 3.66% and a return on equity of 8.90%. Equities research analysts forecast that Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. will post 3.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Energy Industries Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th were given a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. Advanced Energy Industries’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.97%.

Advanced Energy Industries Profile

Advanced Energy Industries, Inc provides precision power conversion, measurement, and control solutions in the United States and internationally. The company's plasma power products offer solutions to enable innovation for semiconductor and thin film plasma processes, such as dry etch and deposition.