Cirrus Logic (NASDAQ:CRUS) Lowered to Hold Rating by Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research downgraded Cirrus Logic from a "strong-buy" to a "hold" in its latest research note.
• Cirrus Logic delivered a strong quarterly beat—EPS $2.97 vs. $2.37 expected and revenue $580.6M—while analysts remain mixed with a consensus "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $152.14 (several firms have raised targets to $175).
• Insiders have been net sellers (37,987 shares worth $5.43M in the last 90 days, including sales by the CEO and an EVP), even as institutional investors own roughly 87.96% of the company.

Cirrus Logic (NASDAQ:CRUS - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Zacks Research from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on CRUS. KeyCorp boosted their price target on Cirrus Logic from $150.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 6th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Cirrus Logic in a report on Friday, March 27th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Cirrus Logic from $163.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Barclays boosted their price target on Cirrus Logic from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Finally, Loop Capital downgraded Cirrus Logic from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $130.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $152.14.

Cirrus Logic Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:CRUS opened at $162.51 on Monday. Cirrus Logic has a 1 year low of $91.32 and a 1 year high of $175.77. The company has a market cap of $8.29 billion, a PE ratio of 21.41 and a beta of 1.08. The stock's 50-day moving average is $147.77 and its 200 day moving average is $133.29.

Cirrus Logic (NASDAQ:CRUS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The semiconductor company reported $2.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.37 by $0.60. Cirrus Logic had a return on equity of 20.41% and a net margin of 20.47%.The company had revenue of $580.62 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $531.43 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.51 EPS. Cirrus Logic's revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Cirrus Logic will post 7.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Justin E. Dougherty sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.16, for a total value of $429,480.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 5,876 shares in the company, valued at $841,208.16. This represents a 33.80% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO John Forsyth sold 21,806 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.15, for a total value of $2,947,080.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 50,723 shares in the company, valued at $6,855,213.45. The trade was a 30.07% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 37,987 shares of company stock worth $5,427,114 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.16% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Cirrus Logic

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its stake in shares of Cirrus Logic by 102.5% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 25,341 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $3,175,000 after buying an additional 12,828 shares during the last quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC bought a new position in Cirrus Logic in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $2,635,000. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in Cirrus Logic by 8.2% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 308,735 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $38,681,000 after acquiring an additional 23,440 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in Cirrus Logic by 223.1% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 144,139 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $17,080,000 after acquiring an additional 99,526 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Earnest Partners LLC lifted its position in Cirrus Logic by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,348,710 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $168,980,000 after acquiring an additional 10,750 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.96% of the company's stock.

Cirrus Logic Company Profile

Cirrus Logic, Inc, headquartered in Austin, Texas, is a fabless semiconductor company specializing in high-precision analog and mixed-signal processing solutions. The firm develops low-power, high-performance audio, voice, and power management integrated circuits, serving prominent consumer electronics OEMs. Its semiconductor devices are designed to enhance audio quality, battery life, and system integration in mobile phones, tablets, wireless headsets and other portable devices.

The company's product portfolio includes digital-to-analog converters (DACs), analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), audio codecs, power management ICs, voice processors and integrated amplifiers.

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