Camtek Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NASDAQ:CAMT)

Key Points

• Camtek Ltd. experienced a spike in options trading, with 4,202 call options purchased, representing a 425% increase from average volumes.
• Several analysts have updated their price targets for Camtek, with Stifel Nicolaus raising it from $84.00 to $98.00, while Barclays lowered their target from $120.00 to $85.00.
• Camtek's recent earnings report revealed $0.79 earnings per share, exceeding expectations, accompanied by a 22.3% increase in quarterly revenue year-over-year.
• The company has a market capital of $4.32 billion and its stock trades at a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.26 amid a range of institutional investments increasing their stakes.

Camtek Ltd. (NASDAQ:CAMT - Get Free Report) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Friday. Stock investors bought 4,202 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 425% compared to the typical volume of 801 call options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on CAMT shares. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Camtek from $84.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Oppenheimer assumed coverage on Camtek in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $100.00 price objective for the company. Barclays lowered their price objective on Camtek from $120.00 to $85.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on Camtek from $100.00 to $82.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, B. Riley upped their price objective on Camtek from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Camtek has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $89.00.

Camtek Stock Performance

CAMT traded up $0.41 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $94.65. The stock had a trading volume of 34,098 shares, compared to its average volume of 472,188. The company has a quick ratio of 4.27, a current ratio of 5.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The stock has a market cap of $4.32 billion, a PE ratio of 36.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 1.34. Camtek has a 1 year low of $47.41 and a 1 year high of $110.73. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $78.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $75.75.

Camtek (NASDAQ:CAMT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 13th. The semiconductor company reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $118.64 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $119.00 million. Camtek had a return on equity of 24.57% and a net margin of 28.40%. Camtek's quarterly revenue was up 22.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.63 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Camtek will post 2.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Huntington National Bank grew its holdings in Camtek by 42.4% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 413 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 123 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Camtek in the 1st quarter worth approximately $31,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Camtek by 61.6% during the 1st quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 769 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 293 shares during the last quarter. State of Wyoming lifted its stake in shares of Camtek by 146.2% during the 4th quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 2,021 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $163,000 after acquiring an additional 1,200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Petrus Trust Company LTA lifted its stake in shares of Camtek by 12.9% during the 1st quarter. Petrus Trust Company LTA now owns 3,706 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $217,000 after acquiring an additional 422 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 41.93% of the company's stock.

About Camtek

Camtek Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and sells inspection and metrology equipment for semiconductor industry. The company provides Eagle-i, a system that delivers 2D inspection and metrology capabilities; Eagle-AP, which addresses the advanced packaging market using software and hardware technologies that deliver superior 2D and 3D inspection and metrology capabilities on the same platform; and Golden Eagle, a panel inspection and metrology system to address the challenges fanout wafer level packaging applications.

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