Azarias Capital Management L.P. Sells 48,441 Shares of Cohu, Inc. $COHU

Key Points

• Azarias Capital Management sold 48,441 shares of Cohu, reducing its stake by 17% to 237,207 shares (about 0.51% of Cohu) and making Cohu roughly 2.4% of Azarias's portfolio.
• Cohu missed quarterly EPS (reported -$0.15 vs. $0.07 expected) despite revenue rising 29.9% year-over-year; shares trade near $37 and analysts hold mixed views with a consensus "Hold" and a $34 price target.

Azarias Capital Management L.P. decreased its position in Cohu, Inc. (NASDAQ:COHU - Free Report) by 17.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 237,207 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 48,441 shares during the quarter. Cohu makes up approximately 2.4% of Azarias Capital Management L.P.'s portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Azarias Capital Management L.P. owned 0.51% of Cohu worth $5,520,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of COHU. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Cohu by 45.4% in the third quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,564 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 488 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its position in shares of Cohu by 83.7% in the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,569 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 715 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Cohu by 202.7% in the second quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,113 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 1,415 shares during the period. Quadrant Capital Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Cohu in the third quarter valued at approximately $81,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its position in shares of Cohu by 135.9% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 4,526 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $87,000 after purchasing an additional 2,607 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.67% of the company's stock.

Cohu Stock Up 5.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:COHU opened at $37.34 on Friday. Cohu, Inc. has a 52 week low of $13.55 and a 52 week high of $37.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 5.69 and a current ratio of 6.88. The company's fifty day moving average is $30.64 and its 200-day moving average is $26.25. The company has a market capitalization of $1.76 billion, a PE ratio of -23.48 and a beta of 1.24.

Cohu (NASDAQ:COHU - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The semiconductor company reported ($0.15) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.07 by ($0.22). The firm had revenue of $122.23 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $122.09 million. Cohu had a negative net margin of 16.40% and a negative return on equity of 3.76%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 29.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.15) EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Cohu, Inc. will post -0.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on COHU. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Cohu from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 18th. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price target on shares of Cohu from $30.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Cohu from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Cohu in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Cohu from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $34.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Cohu news, SVP Christopher Bohrson sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.57, for a total transaction of $28,570.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 176,202 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,034,091.14. This represents a 0.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 2.86% of the company's stock.

Cohu Profile

Cohu, Inc is a global provider of semiconductor test and inspection solutions, offering a broad portfolio of products designed to support chip manufacturers, outsourced semiconductor assembly and test (OSAT) providers, and electronics original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). The company's product lineup includes automatic test handlers, wafer probers, test sockets, thermal subassembly systems and burn-in boards, all engineered to optimize throughput, accuracy and reliability in semiconductor production and final test.

Founded in 1947 and headquartered in Poway, California, Cohu has grown through both organic development and targeted acquisitions to become a recognized leader in test handling and interconnect technologies.

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