Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC Makes New $623,000 Investment in Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEIS)

Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEIS - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 5,389 shares of the electronics maker's stock, valued at approximately $623,000.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Advanced Energy Industries by 61.6% during the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 354 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Advanced Energy Industries during the fourth quarter worth $51,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Advanced Energy Industries during the 4th quarter valued at $74,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Advanced Energy Industries by 26.3% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,023 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $108,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. increased its holdings in Advanced Energy Industries by 16.1% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 989 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $114,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.67% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AEIS has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $130.00 price target (down previously from $135.00) on shares of Advanced Energy Industries in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Needham & Company LLC cut their price objective on Advanced Energy Industries from $145.00 to $135.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 1st. StockNews.com raised shares of Advanced Energy Industries from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Advanced Energy Industries from $124.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Advanced Energy Industries from $115.00 to $110.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Advanced Energy Industries presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $124.67.

Advanced Energy Industries Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:AEIS traded down $0.60 during trading on Thursday, reaching $118.33. 40,536 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 263,408. Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. has a 1-year low of $75.01 and a 1-year high of $132.16. The firm has a market cap of $4.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 82.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.50. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $98.90 and a 200 day simple moving average of $110.41. The company has a quick ratio of 3.27, a current ratio of 4.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

Advanced Energy Industries (NASDAQ:AEIS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The electronics maker reported $1.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.26. The company had revenue of $404.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $392.36 million. Advanced Energy Industries had a net margin of 3.66% and a return on equity of 8.90%. Advanced Energy Industries's quarterly revenue was up 23.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.58 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. will post 3.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Energy Industries Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Monday, May 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.34%. Advanced Energy Industries's payout ratio is presently 20.62%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Lanesha Minnix sold 1,600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.37, for a total value of $206,992.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 3,492 shares in the company, valued at $451,760.04. This represents a 31.42% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Eduardo Bernal Acebedo sold 19,309 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.61, for a total transaction of $2,155,077.49. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 19,822 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,212,333.42. This trade represents a 49.34% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.20% of the company's stock.

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.