Optimist Retirement Group LLC Takes $251,000 Position in Semtech Corporation (NASDAQ:SMTC)

Optimist Retirement Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Semtech Corporation (NASDAQ:SMTC - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 7,299 shares of the semiconductor company's stock, valued at approximately $251,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Semtech by 27.4% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,567 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $97,000 after buying an additional 337 shares during the last quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Semtech during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in Semtech by 58.5% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,498 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 553 shares during the last quarter. Mariner LLC increased its holdings in Semtech by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 18,136 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $1,122,000 after buying an additional 582 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV increased its holdings in Semtech by 16.8% during the first quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,084 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $140,000 after buying an additional 586 shares during the last quarter.

Semtech Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SMTC traded up $2.75 during trading on Friday, hitting $53.62. 2,569,691 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,170,690. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 2.53 and a quick ratio of 1.81. Semtech Corporation has a 52-week low of $24.05 and a 52-week high of $79.52. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $42.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is $42.81. The company has a market cap of $4.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -26.03 and a beta of 1.92.

Semtech (NASDAQ:SMTC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 27th. The semiconductor company reported $0.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.21 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $251.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $249.79 million. Semtech had a positive return on equity of 19.66% and a negative net margin of 12.52%. The firm's revenue was up 21.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.06 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Semtech Corporation will post -0.02 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on SMTC shares. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Semtech from $45.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday. Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and issued a $54.00 price target on shares of Semtech in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Benchmark restated a "buy" rating and issued a $68.00 price target on shares of Semtech in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Morgan Stanley set a $43.00 price target on Semtech in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price target on Semtech from $60.00 to $55.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $59.58.

Insider Activity at Semtech

In other Semtech news, CFO Mark Lin sold 999 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.84, for a total transaction of $43,796.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 17,211 shares in the company, valued at $754,530.24. This trade represents a 5.49% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, COO Asaf Silberstein sold 2,000 shares of Semtech stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.98, for a total value of $85,960.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 105,996 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,555,708.08. This trade represents a 1.85% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.

Semtech Profile

Semtech Corporation designs, develops, manufactures, and markets analog and mixed-signal semiconductor and advanced algorithms. It provides signal integrity products, including a portfolio of optical data communications and video transport products used in various infrastructure, and industrial applications; a portfolio of integrated circuits for data centers, enterprise networks, passive optical networks, wireless base station optical transceivers, and high-speed interface applications; and video products for broadcast applications, as well as video-over-IP technology for professional audio video applications.