First Washington CORP Reduces Stock Holdings in nLight $LASR

Key Points

• First Washington CORP cut its nLight stake by 44.2% in the first quarter, selling 171,748 shares and leaving it with 217,051 shares valued at about $12.4 million.
• Several analysts remain bullish on nLight (NASDAQ:LASR), with the consensus rating at Buy and an average price target of $80.94. Recent targets ranged from $85 to $100, though Wall Street Zen downgraded the stock to Hold.
• nLight reported strong quarterly results, posting EPS of $0.20 on revenue of $80.18 million, both above expectations, while revenue rose 55.2% year over year. The stock was trading around $73 and is near its 12-month high of $86.95.

First Washington CORP trimmed its stake in nLight (NASDAQ:LASR - Free Report) by 44.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 217,051 shares of the company's stock after selling 171,748 shares during the period. nLight comprises about 3.5% of First Washington CORP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest position. First Washington CORP owned about 0.38% of nLight worth $12,376,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in LASR. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. bought a new position in nLight during the first quarter valued at about $52,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. grew its holdings in shares of nLight by 7,142.9% during the 4th quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 1,014 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of nLight by 155.9% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,062 shares of the company's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 647 shares in the last quarter. Financial Consulate Inc. bought a new stake in shares of nLight during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd raised its stake in shares of nLight by 7,871.4% in the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,116 shares of the company's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 1,102 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.88% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on LASR shares. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of nLight from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. William Blair assumed coverage on shares of nLight in a research report on Friday, March 27th. They issued an "outperform" rating for the company. Wall Street Zen lowered nLight from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 18th. Raymond James Financial reissued a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $100.00 target price on shares of nLight in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, UBS Group set a $90.00 price target on nLight in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $80.94.

nLight Stock Up 0.8%

NASDAQ:LASR opened at $73.00 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $4.12 billion, a PE ratio of -243.33 and a beta of 2.30. nLight has a 12 month low of $18.62 and a 12 month high of $86.95. The company's 50-day moving average price is $69.46 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $62.73.

nLight (NASDAQ:LASR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.08 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $80.18 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $72.14 million. nLight had a negative net margin of 5.08% and a negative return on equity of 4.18%. nLight's quarterly revenue was up 55.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.04) earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that nLight will post -0.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at nLight

In other nLight news, CAO James Nias sold 940 shares of nLight stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.99, for a total value of $73,310.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 97,621 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,613,461.79. The trade was a 0.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CEO Scott H. Keeney sold 16,089 shares of nLight stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.60, for a total value of $1,200,239.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,185,039 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $163,003,909.40. The trade was a 0.73% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold 391,038 shares of company stock valued at $28,367,419 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 3.10% of the company's stock.

About nLight

nLIGHT, Inc designs, develops, manufactures, and sells semiconductor and fiber lasers for industrial, microfabrication, and aerospace and defense applications. The company operates in two segments, Laser Products and Advanced Development. It offers semiconductor lasers with various ranges of power levels, wavelengths, and output fiber sizes; and programmable and serviceable fiber lasers for use in industrial and aerospace and defense applications. The company also provides laser sensors, including light detection and ranging technologies for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance applications; and fiber amplifiers, beam combination, and control systems for use in high-energy laser systems in directed energy applications.

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