Aehr Test Systems (NASDAQ:AEHR) Rating Lowered to "Hold" at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research downgraded Aehr Test Systems from “strong buy” to “hold,” although the broader analyst consensus remains “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $132.50.
• AEHR opened at $81.58 and has traded between $18.70 and $147.40 over the past year. The company has a market capitalization of approximately $2.66 billion and a beta of 3.06, indicating significant volatility.
• Institutional ownership stands at 69.69%, boosted by new positions from BlackRock and other investment firms, while insiders sold approximately $13.8 million of stock over the past 90 days.

Aehr Test Systems (NASDAQ:AEHR - Get Free Report) was downgraded by investment analysts at Zacks Research from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, Zacks reports.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on AEHR. Oppenheimer began coverage on shares of Aehr Test Systems in a research report on Thursday, September 10th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $120.00 price target on the stock. Freedom Capital raised shares of Aehr Test Systems from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Aehr Test Systems in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $175.00 price objective for the company. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Aehr Test Systems from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 18th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of Aehr Test Systems from a "sell (d)" rating to a "sell (e+)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $132.50.

Aehr Test Systems Price Performance

AEHR opened at $81.58 on Monday. Aehr Test Systems has a 1 year low of $18.70 and a 1 year high of $147.40. The company has a market capitalization of $2.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -339.90 and a beta of 3.06. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $91.82 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $81.75.

Insider Activity at Aehr Test Systems

In related news, COO Adil Engineer sold 15,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.02, for a total value of $1,965,300.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 46,977 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,154,926.54. The trade was a 24.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Rhea Posedel sold 5,973 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total transaction of $836,220.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 381,989 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $53,478,460. The trade was a 1.54% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 109,475 shares of company stock worth $13,827,160. 4.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Aehr Test Systems in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $255,476,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Aehr Test Systems in the second quarter worth $64,433,000. AWM Investment Company Inc. bought a new position in shares of Aehr Test Systems in the second quarter worth $36,004,000. Next Century Growth Investors LLC grew its position in shares of Aehr Test Systems by 99.9% in the fourth quarter. Next Century Growth Investors LLC now owns 552,506 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $11,155,000 after purchasing an additional 276,160 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bard Associates Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Aehr Test Systems in the second quarter valued at $15,072,000. 69.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Aehr Test Systems

Aehr Test Systems NASDAQ: AEHR develops and manufactures semiconductor test and burn-in equipment used to verify the reliability and performance of integrated circuits, wafers and packaged devices. Its systems are designed to identify defects and reliability issues before semiconductor products are shipped to customers.

The company's product portfolio includes the FOX family of test and burn-in systems, along with wafer-level and packaged-device solutions such as WaferPak contactors and DiePak carriers.

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