Royce & Associates LP Sells 52,443 Shares of Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS)

Key Points

• Royce & Associates LP reduced its stake in Axcelis Technologies by 15.7%, selling 52,443 shares, and now owns 280,983 shares worth approximately $13.96 million.
• Analyst firm B. Riley raised its price target for Axcelis Technologies from $58 to $75 while maintaining a "neutral" rating on the stock.
• Axcelis Technologies reported earnings exceeding expectations with $1.04 per share, compared to an estimate of $0.39, although it experienced a 23.7% decline in quarterly revenue year-over-year.

Royce & Associates LP cut its stake in Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS - Free Report) by 15.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 280,983 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 52,443 shares during the quarter. Royce & Associates LP owned 0.87% of Axcelis Technologies worth $13,956,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Brookwood Investment Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Axcelis Technologies in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $417,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS raised its stake in Axcelis Technologies by 70.8% in the 1st quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 11,100 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $551,000 after acquiring an additional 4,600 shares during the period. Homestead Advisers Corp raised its stake in Axcelis Technologies by 15.5% in the 1st quarter. Homestead Advisers Corp now owns 34,200 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $1,699,000 after acquiring an additional 4,600 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new stake in Axcelis Technologies in the 1st quarter valued at $701,000. Finally, Peterson Wealth Services increased its position in Axcelis Technologies by 18.7% during the 1st quarter. Peterson Wealth Services now owns 9,131 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $454,000 after buying an additional 1,438 shares during the period. 89.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director John T. Kurtzweil sold 1,682 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.93, for a total value of $104,166.26. Following the sale, the director directly owned 35,050 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,170,646.50. This trade represents a 4.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.48% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, B. Riley increased their price objective on Axcelis Technologies from $58.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $118.33.

Axcelis Technologies Price Performance

Shares of ACLS traded up $0.55 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $73.40. 246,529 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 442,855. The company has a market cap of $2.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.44, a P/E/G ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 1.57. Axcelis Technologies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $40.40 and a fifty-two week high of $128.70. The company has a quick ratio of 4.08, a current ratio of 5.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The firm's fifty day moving average is $67.47 and its 200 day moving average is $61.35.

Axcelis Technologies (NASDAQ:ACLS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The semiconductor company reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.65. The company had revenue of $192.56 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $184.86 million. Axcelis Technologies had a return on equity of 18.55% and a net margin of 18.58%. Axcelis Technologies's quarterly revenue was down 23.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.57 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Axcelis Technologies, Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Axcelis Technologies Company Profile

Axcelis Technologies, Inc designs, manufactures, and services ion implantation and other processing equipment used in the fabrication of semiconductor chips in the United States, Europe, and Asia Pacific. The company offers high energy, high current, and medium current implanters for various application requirements.