Aehr Test Systems $AEHR Shares Sold by Rice Hall James & Associates LLC

Key Points

• Rice Hall James & Associates LLC reduced its Aehr Test Systems stake by 40% in the first quarter, selling 181,316 shares and leaving it with 272,252 shares worth about $10.1 million.
• Other institutional investors showed mixed activity, but overall ownership remains high, with hedge funds and institutions holding about 69.69% of the stock.
• Analysts are generally positive on Aehr Test Systems, with an average Buy rating and a consensus price target of $117.50, though one firm recently maintained a sell rating.

Rice Hall James & Associates LLC cut its holdings in shares of Aehr Test Systems (NASDAQ:AEHR - Free Report) by 40.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 272,252 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 181,316 shares during the quarter. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC owned about 0.87% of Aehr Test Systems worth $10,095,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Aehr Test Systems by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,337,433 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $47,193,000 after buying an additional 49,243 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Aehr Test Systems by 129.9% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 830,664 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $16,771,000 after buying an additional 469,400 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Aehr Test Systems by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 685,694 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $13,846,000 after acquiring an additional 5,591 shares during the last quarter. Halter Ferguson Financial Inc. increased its position in shares of Aehr Test Systems by 41.7% during the fourth quarter. Halter Ferguson Financial Inc. now owns 642,129 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $12,965,000 after acquiring an additional 189,117 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Aehr Test Systems by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 624,085 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $12,600,000 after acquiring an additional 21,982 shares during the period. 69.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Lake Street Capital restated a "buy" rating and issued a $110.00 price objective on shares of Aehr Test Systems in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Aehr Test Systems from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Zacks Research raised Aehr Test Systems from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Weiss Ratings cut Aehr Test Systems from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Craig Hallum restated a "buy" rating and set a $125.00 price target on shares of Aehr Test Systems in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $117.50.

Insider Transactions at Aehr Test Systems

In other Aehr Test Systems news, Director Howard T. Slayen sold 6,819 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.73, for a total value of $714,153.87. Following the sale, the director owned 169,709 shares of the company's stock, valued at $17,773,623.57. This trade represents a 3.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 6.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Aehr Test Systems Trading Down 13.8%

Shares of NASDAQ AEHR opened at $76.32 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $2.40 billion, a P/E ratio of -317.99 and a beta of 3.17. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $92.59 and its 200-day simple moving average is $63.89. Aehr Test Systems has a 12-month low of $15.94 and a 12-month high of $126.62.

Aehr Test Systems Company Profile

Aehr Test Systems develops, manufactures and sells semiconductor test and burn-in equipment used by device manufacturers to ensure quality and reliability of integrated circuits. Its products are designed for wafer-level reliability assessment, functional test and stress screening of memory devices, system-on-chips, optical components and power semiconductors. By focusing on wafer-level burn-in and testing processes, the company helps reduce cost and improve yield for high-volume semiconductor production.

The company's product portfolio includes FOX series wafer probe test and burn-in systems as well as ABTS burn-in ovens.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.