Tower Semiconductor Ltd. (NASDAQ:TSEM) Stock Rated "Moderate Buy" by Sell-Side Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts give Tower Semiconductor a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating: Seven of ten covering analysts recommend buying the stock, one rates it a strong buy, and two advise holding. The average 12-month price target is $316.
• The stock has declined 11.5%: Shares opened at $167.71, well below their 50-day and 200-day moving averages, with a 52-week range of $72.55 to $319.94.
• Quarterly results exceeded expectations: Tower reported adjusted EPS of $0.88 versus the $0.76 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 23.7% year over year to $460.08 million.

Shares of Tower Semiconductor Ltd. (NASDAQ:TSEM - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" by the ten brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $316.00.

Several research firms have recently weighed in on TSEM. Stifel Nicolaus initiated coverage on Tower Semiconductor in a report on Tuesday, September 1st. They set a "buy" rating and a $270.00 price target on the stock. Benchmark reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Tower Semiconductor in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Tower Semiconductor in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. National Bank Financial upgraded Tower Semiconductor to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Tower Semiconductor in a research report on Friday, August 7th. They set a "buy" rating and a $367.00 price target for the company.

Tower Semiconductor Stock Down 11.5%

TSEM opened at $167.71 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 4.31, a current ratio of 4.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $219.83 and a 200-day moving average price of $232.62. Tower Semiconductor has a twelve month low of $72.55 and a twelve month high of $319.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 66.29 and a beta of 0.89.

Tower Semiconductor (NASDAQ:TSEM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The semiconductor company reported $0.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.76 by $0.12. Tower Semiconductor had a net margin of 16.94% and a return on equity of 9.83%. The company had revenue of $460.08 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $454.68 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.41 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 23.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Tower Semiconductor will post 3.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Tower Semiconductor

In other news, Director Yoav Chelouche sold 232 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.06, for a total transaction of $49,893.92. Following the sale, the director directly owned 33,734 shares in the company, valued at $7,254,834.04. This trade represents a 0.68% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Russell Ellwanger sold 104,226 shares of Tower Semiconductor stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $248.34, for a total transaction of $25,883,484.84. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 526,788 shares in the company, valued at approximately $130,822,531.92. This trade represents a 16.52% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 181,767 shares of company stock valued at $45,610,065. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Tower Semiconductor

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Tower Semiconductor by 4.1% during the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,295 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $338,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in Tower Semiconductor by 20.8% in the 3rd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 319 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $73,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Silverleafe Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in Tower Semiconductor by 3.0% in the 2nd quarter. Silverleafe Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,860 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $745,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Tower Semiconductor by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 5,111 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $1,162,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC raised its holdings in shares of Tower Semiconductor by 8.1% during the 2nd quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 1,428 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $372,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. 70.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Tower Semiconductor Company Profile

Tower Semiconductor Ltd. is an Israeli specialty semiconductor foundry that manufactures integrated circuits for fabless semiconductor companies, integrated device manufacturers and system companies. The company provides process technologies and production services rather than selling branded end-user electronics.

Its offerings include analog and mixed-signal technologies, radio-frequency and high-voltage circuits, power management solutions, image sensors, and specialty memory products.

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