AXT (NASDAQ:AXTI) Stock Price Down 9.7% - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• AXT shares fell 9.7% during Thursday trading, dropping from a prior close of $53.42 to around $48.21 on much lighter-than-normal volume.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed but cautious: the stock has an average Hold rating, with a consensus price target of $43.80, though Northland Securities set a much higher target of $125.00.
• The company reported a smaller-than-expected quarterly loss and slightly better revenue than estimated, but insider selling was notable, including recent sales by the CEO and a director.

Shares of AXT Inc (NASDAQ:AXTI - Get Free Report) fell 9.7% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $47.79 and last traded at $48.2140. Approximately 1,067,232 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 89% from the average session volume of 10,155,839 shares. The stock had previously closed at $53.42.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Northland Securities set a $125.00 price objective on AXT in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Weiss Ratings raised AXT from a "sell (e+)" rating to a "sell (d-)" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $43.80.

AXT Stock Performance

The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $92.52 and its 200-day simple moving average is $59.49. The company has a market capitalization of $3.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -150.90 and a beta of 1.86.

AXT (NASDAQ:AXTI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The semiconductor company reported ($0.01) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.04) by $0.03. AXT had a negative net margin of 14.69% and a negative return on equity of 5.71%. The business had revenue of $26.92 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $26.22 million. AXT has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.060-0.080 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that AXT Inc will post 0.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Jesse Chen sold 6,172 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.24, for a total value of $711,261.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 50,275 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,793,691. This represents a 10.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Morris S. Young sold 123,601 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.33, for a total value of $14,007,701.33. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,149,533 shares of the company's stock, valued at $243,606,574.89. The trade was a 5.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 251,636 shares of company stock worth $27,789,677. 5.97% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AXT

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Tema ETFs LLC acquired a new position in shares of AXT in the 2nd quarter valued at $105,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB acquired a new stake in shares of AXT during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,391,000. Shariaportfolio Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AXT during the 1st quarter valued at about $984,000. Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in AXT by 112.0% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 776,300 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $44,234,000 after acquiring an additional 410,181 shares during the period. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC bought a new stake in AXT in the first quarter valued at about $1,395,000. Institutional investors own 49.52% of the company's stock.

About AXT

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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