D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. Boosts Stake in Ultra Clean Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCTT)

D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. increased its stake in shares of Ultra Clean Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCTT - Free Report) by 17.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 267,512 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after acquiring an additional 39,827 shares during the quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. owned approximately 0.59% of Ultra Clean worth $9,617,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ultra Clean in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ultra Clean by 107.0% during the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 948 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 490 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Ultra Clean by 694.3% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 977 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 854 shares during the period. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in shares of Ultra Clean by 58.1% in the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,913 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $69,000 after purchasing an additional 703 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its position in Ultra Clean by 139.2% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 2,382 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $86,000 after purchasing an additional 1,386 shares during the period. 96.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ultra Clean Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ UCTT traded down $0.13 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $21.31. The company's stock had a trading volume of 36,101 shares, compared to its average volume of 460,088. The stock has a market capitalization of $962.31 million, a P/E ratio of 265.35, a PEG ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 2.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 2.75 and a quick ratio of 1.63. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $21.21 and a 200-day moving average price of $30.51. Ultra Clean Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $16.66 and a 12-month high of $56.47.

Ultra Clean (NASDAQ:UCTT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The semiconductor company reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.31 by ($0.03). Ultra Clean had a net margin of 0.18% and a return on equity of 4.08%. The company had revenue of $518.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $526.13 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.27 EPS. Ultra Clean's quarterly revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Ultra Clean Holdings, Inc. will post 1.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Bill Bentinck purchased 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $25.17 per share, with a total value of $75,510.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 60,695 shares in the company, valued at $1,527,693.15. This represents a 5.20% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Jamie J. Palfrey sold 9,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.20, for a total transaction of $182,400.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 30,465 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $584,928. This represents a 23.77% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on UCTT. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on shares of Ultra Clean from $48.00 to $32.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Oppenheimer cut their price target on Ultra Clean from $60.00 to $30.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Needham & Company LLC lowered their price objective on Ultra Clean from $40.00 to $26.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Ultra Clean from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Ultra Clean has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $37.00.

Ultra Clean Company Profile

Ultra Clean Holdings, Inc develops and supplies critical subsystems, components and parts, and ultra-high purity cleaning and analytical services for the semiconductor industry in the United States and internationally. The company provides ultra-clean valves, high purity connectors, industrial process connectors and valves, pneumatic actuators, manifolds and safety solutions, hoses, pressure gauges, and gas line and component heaters; chemical delivery modules that deliver gases and reactive chemicals in a liquid or gaseous form from a centralized subsystem to the reaction chamber; and gas delivery systems, such as weldments, filters, mass flow controllers, regulators, pressure transducers and valves, component heaters, and an integrated electronic and/or pneumatic control system.