AXT (NASDAQ:AXTI) Raised to Strong-Buy at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research upgraded AXT to “strong buy” from “hold,” while the broader analyst consensus remains “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $77.
• AXT reported quarterly EPS of $0.19, surpassing the $0.07 consensus estimate, while revenue of $47.59 million exceeded expectations of $34.08 million.
• The stock opened at $78.47, with a market capitalization of approximately $5.13 billion; insiders sold 251,636 shares worth about $27.8 million during the latest quarter.

AXT (NASDAQ:AXTI - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of AXT from a "sell (e+)" rating to a "sell (d-)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. B. Riley Financial cut their target price on AXT from $73.00 to $52.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Needham & Company LLC upgraded AXT from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $90.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 31st. UBS Group set a $90.00 price target on AXT in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Northland Securities set a $125.00 price objective on AXT in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AXT has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $77.00.

AXT Price Performance

AXT stock opened at $78.47 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $68.83 and a 200-day moving average of $64.97. AXT has a 1 year low of $2.05 and a 1 year high of $143.16. The company has a market capitalization of $5.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 3,923.50 and a beta of 1.90.

AXT (NASDAQ:AXTI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The semiconductor company reported $0.19 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.07 by $0.12. AXT had a net margin of 3.23% and a return on equity of 1.55%. The business had revenue of $47.59 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.08 million. AXT has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.300-0.320 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that AXT will post 0.8 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at AXT

In other AXT news, Director Jesse Chen sold 13,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.77, for a total transaction of $1,245,010.00. Following the sale, the director owned 56,447 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,405,929.19. This represents a 18.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Morris S. Young sold 123,601 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.33, for a total value of $14,007,701.33. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 2,149,533 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $243,606,574.89. The trade was a 5.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 251,636 shares of company stock worth $27,789,677 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 5.97% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of AXT

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AXT by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 293,818 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $412,000 after purchasing an additional 8,039 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning bought a new position in shares of AXT in the second quarter valued at approximately $86,000. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new position in AXT in the 2nd quarter valued at $42,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP bought a new position in AXT during the third quarter valued at about $145,000. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in AXT in the third quarter worth about $52,000. 49.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AXT Company Profile

AXT, Inc NASDAQ: AXTI is a global supplier of compound and single-element semiconductor substrates, offering a range of materials critical for high-performance electronic and optoelectronic devices. Founded in 1986 and headquartered in Fremont, California, AXT specializes in the development, manufacture and distribution of wafers composed of gallium arsenide (GaAs), indium phosphide (InP), gallium nitride (GaN) and other compound semiconductor materials. These substrates serve as the foundational platforms for devices used in data communications, wireless infrastructure, advanced computing, consumer electronics and photovoltaic applications.

AXT's product portfolio encompasses a variety of wafer sizes, dopant concentrations and crystal orientations, tailored to meet the precise specifications of its customers.

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