GSA Capital Partners LLP Invests $2.35 Million in nLight $LASR

Key Points

• GSA Capital Partners acquired 33,755 shares of nLight worth approximately $2.35 million during the second quarter, giving it a 0.06% stake. Institutional investors collectively own 83.88% of the company.
• nLight exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting earnings of $0.15 per share versus the $0.14 consensus and revenue of $82.59 million, up 33.8% year over year. Despite the revenue growth, the company posted a negative net margin and analysts expect a full-year loss.
• Wall Street maintains a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating, with an average price target of $87.94; however, insider selling totaled $23.7 million over the past 90 days, primarily to cover tax obligations on equity awards.

GSA Capital Partners LLP acquired a new position in nLight (NASDAQ:LASR - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 33,755 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,350,000. GSA Capital Partners LLP owned about 0.06% of nLight at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its holdings in nLight by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 27,593 shares of the company's stock valued at $214,000 after purchasing an additional 1,170 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC raised its position in shares of nLight by 622.7% during the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 77,201 shares of the company's stock valued at $600,000 after buying an additional 66,518 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers raised its position in shares of nLight by 8.4% during the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 75,545 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,487,000 after buying an additional 5,828 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in shares of nLight by 7.2% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 107,417 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,114,000 after buying an additional 7,179 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC bought a new stake in shares of nLight in the second quarter valued at about $600,000. Institutional investors own 83.88% of the company's stock.

nLight Stock Performance

NASDAQ:LASR opened at $52.60 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $65.54 and a 200-day moving average of $64.87. nLight has a 52 week low of $24.87 and a 52 week high of $86.95. The company has a market capitalization of $3.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -210.40 and a beta of 2.31.

nLight (NASDAQ:LASR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.01. nLight had a negative net margin of 4.02% and a negative return on equity of 2.83%. The business had revenue of $82.59 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $78.58 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.06 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 33.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that nLight will post -0.2 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at nLight

In other news, CFO Joseph John Corso sold 3,817 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.90, for a total value of $278,259.30. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 169,915 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,386,803.50. This represents a 2.20% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 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. Also, CAO James Nias sold 940 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owned 97,621 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,613,461.79. The trade was a 0.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 328,522 shares of company stock valued at $23,668,717. 3.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on LASR shares. Craig Hallum lifted their target price on nLight from $80.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $100.00 price target on shares of nLight in a report on Friday, May 8th. Zacks Research downgraded nLight from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price objective on nLight from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of nLight in a research report on Friday, July 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, nLight presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $87.94.

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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