Nomura Holdings Inc. Acquires 36,511 Shares of Harmonic Inc. (NASDAQ:HLIT)

Nomura Holdings Inc. raised its position in Harmonic Inc. (NASDAQ:HLIT - Free Report) by 54.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 104,026 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock after buying an additional 36,511 shares during the quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. owned 0.09% of Harmonic worth $1,376,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of HLIT. Quarry LP bought a new position in Harmonic in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its holdings in Harmonic by 5,388.1% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 5,543 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 5,442 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC raised its position in Harmonic by 14,765.9% during the 4th quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 6,095 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $81,000 after purchasing an additional 6,054 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in Harmonic by 84.8% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 6,295 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $83,000 after buying an additional 2,888 shares during the period. Finally, Cresset Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Harmonic in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $133,000. 99.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Harmonic Stock Down 1.7%

HLIT traded down $0.16 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $8.94. The company had a trading volume of 78,857 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,149,639. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $9.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $11.00. Harmonic Inc. has a 52 week low of $7.91 and a 52 week high of $15.46. The company has a market capitalization of $1.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.12 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a quick ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 2.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

Harmonic (NASDAQ:HLIT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The communications equipment provider reported $0.11 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.05 by $0.06. Harmonic had a return on equity of 15.90% and a net margin of 5.78%. The company had revenue of $133.14 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $127.51 million. Harmonic's quarterly revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Harmonic Inc. will post 0.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Harmonic announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Monday, February 10th that permits the company to repurchase $200.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the communications equipment provider to purchase up to 15.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on HLIT shares. Barclays restated an "underperform" rating on shares of Harmonic in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Rosenblatt Securities dropped their target price on shares of Harmonic from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Harmonic from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $14.00 price objective on shares of Harmonic in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Harmonic in a research report on Friday, February 21st. They set a "hold" rating on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $12.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at Harmonic

In related news, Director Daniel T. Whalen bought 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were bought at an average price of $10.15 per share, with a total value of $30,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,840 shares in the company, valued at approximately $89,726. This represents a 51.37% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 1.21% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Harmonic Company Profile

Harmonic Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides broadband solutions worldwide. The company operates through Broadband and Video segments. The Broadband segment sells broadband access solutions and related services, including cOS software-based broadband access solutions to broadband operators; and cOS central cloud services, a subscription service for cOS customers.