Laurel Oak Wealth Management LLC Takes $2.14 Million Position in nLight $LASR

Key Points

• Laurel Oak Wealth Management initiated a new position in nLight, buying 37,500 shares worth about $2.14 million in the first quarter.
• Analyst sentiment remains mostly positive: nLight carries a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” with a consensus price target of $75.50, though opinions remain mixed across firms.
• Insiders recently sold shares, including CEO Scott H. Keeney and CFO Joseph John Corso, while nLight’s latest quarter showed strong revenue growth and earnings that beat expectations.

Laurel Oak Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in nLight (NASDAQ:LASR - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund bought 37,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,138,000. Laurel Oak Wealth Management LLC owned 0.07% of nLight as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership purchased a new stake in nLight during the 4th quarter valued at $41,315,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in nLight by 377.2% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,057,281 shares of the company's stock worth $31,327,000 after buying an additional 835,720 shares during the period. Portolan Capital Management LLC bought a new position in nLight during the third quarter valued at $22,809,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in nLight by 18.2% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,864,312 shares of the company's stock valued at $144,130,000 after acquiring an additional 747,958 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP increased its position in nLight by 537.8% during the third quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 631,486 shares of the company's stock valued at $18,711,000 after acquiring an additional 532,470 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.88% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $81.00 price target on shares of nLight in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Robert W. Baird began coverage on shares of nLight in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $95.00 price objective on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of nLight from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their target price on nLight from $40.00 to $62.50 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of nLight in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, nLight presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $75.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Scott H. Keeney sold 46,735 shares of nLight stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.48, for a total value of $3,200,412.80. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,375,519 shares in the company, valued at approximately $162,675,541.12. This trade represents a 1.93% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 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, CFO Joseph John Corso sold 35,476 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.40, for a total value of $2,497,510.40. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 177,572 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,501,068.80. This trade represents a 16.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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. 3.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

nLight Trading Down 1.7%

Shares of LASR stock opened at $61.37 on Friday. nLight has a twelve month low of $17.84 and a twelve month high of $86.95. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $71.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $58.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -204.56 and a beta of 2.31.

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

nLight Profile

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding LASR? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for nLight (NASDAQ:LASR - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.