LHM Inc. Raises Position in IPG Photonics Corporation (NASDAQ:IPGP)

Key Points

• LHM Inc. increased its stake in IPG Photonics Corporation by 37.8% in the first quarter, owning a total of 80,960 shares worth approximately $5.11 million.
• IPG Photonics reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, exceeding expectations of $0.10, despite a 2.7% decline in revenue year over year.
• Several investment firms have adjusted their ratings and target prices for IPG Photonics, with Bernstein upgrading it to "outperform" and setting a target price of $97.00.

LHM Inc. increased its holdings in shares of IPG Photonics Corporation (NASDAQ:IPGP - Free Report) by 37.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 80,960 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after buying an additional 22,191 shares during the period. IPG Photonics accounts for about 1.7% of LHM Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest holding. LHM Inc. owned approximately 0.19% of IPG Photonics worth $5,112,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Merit Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in IPG Photonics in the first quarter valued at approximately $343,000. Retirement Systems of Alabama raised its stake in IPG Photonics by 20.5% in the 1st quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 215,573 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $13,611,000 after acquiring an additional 36,648 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in IPG Photonics by 194.1% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 12,568 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $794,000 after purchasing an additional 8,294 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in IPG Photonics during the fourth quarter worth $298,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in shares of IPG Photonics by 10.2% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 86,725 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $6,307,000 after purchasing an additional 8,041 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.79% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on IPGP. Stifel Nicolaus set a $72.00 target price on IPG Photonics in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of IPG Photonics from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $97.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Raymond James Financial decreased their target price on shares of IPG Photonics from $80.00 to $70.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of IPG Photonics from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $75.00.

Insider Transactions at IPG Photonics

In related news, Director Jeanmarie F. Desmond sold 1,360 shares of IPG Photonics stock in a transaction on Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.24, for a total transaction of $103,686.40. Following the sale, the director directly owned 9,740 shares in the company, valued at approximately $742,577.60. This trade represents a 12.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 39.50% of the company's stock.

IPG Photonics Stock Down 1.0%

IPGP stock traded down $0.79 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $78.67. 167,698 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 301,960. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $72.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $65.93. IPG Photonics Corporation has a 52 week low of $48.59 and a 52 week high of $88.50. The company has a market cap of $3.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -16.06, a P/E/G ratio of 23.01 and a beta of 0.88.

IPG Photonics (NASDAQ:IPGP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The semiconductor company reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.10 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $250.72 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $228.20 million. IPG Photonics had a negative net margin of 22.77% and a positive return on equity of 2.25%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.45 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that IPG Photonics Corporation will post 1.54 earnings per share for the current year.

IPG Photonics Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were given a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%.

IPG Photonics Company Profile

IPG Photonics Corporation develops, manufactures, and sells various high-performance fiber lasers, fiber amplifiers, and diode lasers used in various applications primarily in materials processing worldwide. Its laser products include hybrid fiber-solid state lasers with green and ultraviolet wavelengths; fiber pigtailed packaged diodes and fiber coupled direct diode laser systems; high-energy pulsed lasers, multi-wavelength and tunable lasers, and single-polarization and single-frequency lasers; and high-power optical fiber delivery cables, fiber couplers, beam switches, chillers, scanners, and other accessories.