Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Sells 1,693 Shares of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEIS)

Key Points

• Maryland State Retirement & Pension System reduced its stake in Advanced Energy Industries by 13.3%, holding 10,994 shares valued at approximately $1,048,000.
• EVP Paul R. Oldham and EVP John Donaghey sold shares of Advanced Energy Industries, experiencing ownership decreases of 3.65% and 15.35%, respectively.
• Analysts have raised their price targets for Advanced Energy Industries, with the average target now at $138.90 and ratings reflecting a consensus of "Moderate Buy".

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System trimmed its holdings in Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEIS - Free Report) by 13.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,994 shares of the electronics maker's stock after selling 1,693 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System's holdings in Advanced Energy Industries were worth $1,048,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AEIS. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Advanced Energy Industries by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 209,785 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $24,257,000 after purchasing an additional 2,951 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Advanced Energy Industries by 61.6% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 354 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp raised its holdings in shares of Advanced Energy Industries by 10.2% in the fourth quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 7,351 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $850,000 after purchasing an additional 682 shares during the last quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Advanced Energy Industries by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 3,916 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $453,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PEAK6 LLC acquired a new position in Advanced Energy Industries during the fourth quarter worth $476,000. 99.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AEIS has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus set a $150.00 target price on shares of Advanced Energy Industries and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Needham & Company LLC raised their price objective on Advanced Energy Industries from $135.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Advanced Energy Industries from $118.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Advanced Energy Industries from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, June 27th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Advanced Energy Industries from $124.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $138.90.

Advanced Energy Industries Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of NASDAQ AEIS traded down $0.66 during trading on Thursday, reaching $161.86. The company had a trading volume of 774,234 shares, compared to its average volume of 357,260. Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. has a 12-month low of $75.01 and a 12-month high of $163.07. The stock has a market cap of $6.11 billion, a PE ratio of 73.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.52. The business's 50-day moving average is $137.11 and its 200 day moving average is $117.57. The company has a quick ratio of 2.97, a current ratio of 4.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45.

Advanced Energy Industries (NASDAQ:AEIS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The electronics maker reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.22. Advanced Energy Industries had a return on equity of 12.38% and a net margin of 5.13%. The firm had revenue of $441.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $421.32 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.85 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 21.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. will post 3.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Energy Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 25th will be given a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 25th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. Advanced Energy Industries's dividend payout ratio is presently 18.10%.

Insider Transactions at Advanced Energy Industries

In other Advanced Energy Industries news, EVP Paul R. Oldham sold 1,173 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.29, for a total value of $154,003.17. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 31,006 shares in the company, valued at $4,070,777.74. This represents a 3.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John Donaghey sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total value of $280,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 11,029 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,544,060. This represents a 15.35% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.20% of the company's stock.

About Advanced Energy Industries

Advanced Energy Industries, Inc provides precision power conversion, measurement, and control solutions in the United States and internationally. The company's plasma power products offer solutions to enable innovation for semiconductor and thin film plasma processes, such as dry etch and deposition.