Raymond James Financial Inc. Takes $397,000 Position in Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS)

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund purchased 5,688 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $397,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Reinhart Partners LLC. raised its position in shares of Axcelis Technologies by 50.7% in the 4th quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. now owns 1,036,112 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $72,393,000 after purchasing an additional 348,504 shares in the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp boosted its stake in Axcelis Technologies by 61.9% during the 4th quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 820,116 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $57,302,000 after acquiring an additional 313,689 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Axcelis Technologies by 45.6% during the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 87,825 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $6,136,000 after acquiring an additional 27,497 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Axcelis Technologies by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 188,559 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $13,175,000 after purchasing an additional 7,476 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LPL Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of Axcelis Technologies by 36.1% during the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 60,834 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $4,250,000 after purchasing an additional 16,152 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.98% of the company’s stock.

Axcelis Technologies Trading Down 2.1 %

NASDAQ:ACLS opened at $57.64 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.37, a P/E/G ratio of 4.52 and a beta of 1.52. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $51.61 and a 200 day simple moving average of $65.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 5.41 and a quick ratio of 4.05. Axcelis Technologies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $40.40 and a 12-month high of $158.61.

Axcelis Technologies (NASDAQ:ACLS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The semiconductor company reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.65. Axcelis Technologies had a net margin of 19.75% and a return on equity of 21.02%. The company had revenue of $192.56 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $184.86 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.57 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 23.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Axcelis Technologies, Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Axcelis Technologies announced that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, March 12th that allows the company to buyback $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the semiconductor company to reacquire up to 5.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Craig Hallum lowered their price objective on Axcelis Technologies from $115.00 to $105.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. William Blair lowered Axcelis Technologies from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. B. Riley reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $50.00 price objective (down previously from $80.00) on shares of Axcelis Technologies in a report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Axcelis Technologies in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $131.00.

Axcelis Technologies Company 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.